What book are you currently reading

There is a saying that your life only gets better when you get better. And 

also you will agree with me that the difference between someone who is doing 

better than you is not because he/she has more money than you but because the 

person knows something that you don't know. Also human beings are not perfect 

so we have areas in which we are not good and need to work on them. It could 

be on communication, marketing, sales, man management, project management, 

negotiation, self discipline, self confidence, public speaking, business 

management and so many others. 

So the question is what book are you currently reading to help you in any area 

you are not good at or even in areas you are good at and want to become better 

. Interestingly, they are so many books, ebooks and audio books that help us 

address this areas of our life. It is also said that if you read 30-60mins 

everyday for a full year, you would have spent about the same time and have the same knowledge a Ph. D or 

Masters holder spends in their education.

Below are some of the books I have in my library

-----------------------------------------------

1. You Can Negotiate Anything by Herb Cohen

2. The Psychology of Selling by Brian Tracy

3. The Science of Self Confidence by Brian Tracy

4. Think and Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill

5. The Power of Self Discipline "No Excuses" by Brian Tracy

6. What The Most Successful People Do Before Breakfast by Laura Vanderkam

7. Think Big by Ben Carson

Below are some of the books I will add to my library in 2015

------------------------------------------------------------

1. To Sell Is Human by Daniel Pink

2. Negotiate This by Herb Cohen

3. The Presentation Secrets of Steve Jobs by Carmine Gallo

4. The 30-Day MBA by Colin Barrow

5. The Start-Up of You: Adapt to the Future, Invest in Yourself and Transform 

Your Career by Reid Hoffman

6. Brilliant Time Management by Mike Clayton

7. Its Not Over Until You Win by Les Brown

What books do you have in your library? What books do you intend to add in 

your library in 2015? Do you think your life will just get better by itself 

without you putting in any work? So what book are you currently reading?

Remember that YOUR LIFE ONLY GETS BETTER WHEN YOU GET BETTER

There is no Success without Struggle

Be motivated and never say never. Your dreams may seem impossible but its 

better to say I tried than what would have been....

Now read this...

MTN came to Nigeria at a time when nobody wanted to invest in Nigeria, at a 

time when Nigeria did not have phones. Even Zenith bank refused to loan MTN 

cash to operate, UBA rejected MTN's offer but today see the difference.

At least, we all know the story of the only civilian unelected President in 

Nigeria - Goodluck Jonathan. We know how the people said he was not going to 

be President; they even made him acting-President. Today,  the rest is 

history.

What about Cowbell? When they came to Nigeria, they made milk in a sachet, 

Peak was laughing at them - they said Cowbell was milk for the poor - but they 

were right! 3million poor people could afford N10 a day for a sachet of milk. 

When you do the math - 3million people buying milk at N10.00 that was N30 

million every single day. In a month, they grossed N900million(almost 

N1billion). Even Peak, had to make sachet milk in order to survive the market.

Another intresting story is the founder/CEO of WhatsApp who was turned down 

from a job in 2009 by Facebook and decided to start WhatsApp. Facebook bought 

WhatsApp from him in 2014 for $19billion and made him a Vice President. As of 

October 2014, he is worth $7.5billion.

So what have people told you? What have they said you cannot do or you do not 

qualify ? They told Cowbell, they told Goodluck, they told MTN, they told Jan 

Koum, but today the story has changed. I have a feeling something is changing 

for you today! They will change their strategies just to keep in step with 

you. Don't listen to what people are saying or what life is showing you. YES, 

YOU CAN. Success is not about where you graduated from, or what grade you 

graduated with, but what graduates out of you.

Keep the spirit UP.

Be Inspired as we dey inspire.....

4 Very Good Reasons For A Man To Hit A Woman

Lately, there has been much discussion about violence against women by the men in their life. Many have said there is never a good reason for a man to strike a woman but I disagree and today I am speaking out! I have six sons and I have taught them what my father taught my brothers and I: there are four good reasons for a man to hit the woman he loves;
1. Fire. If you look over at the woman you love and discover flames have overtaken your girl, you should absolutely knock her to the ground and start rolling her around.
2. Spider. If your princess discovers a spider wandering across her shoulder and with sheer terror in her voice says “GET. IT. Off! You should smack that 8 legged sucker right off of her.
3. Choking. If over dinner she begins to laugh at another one of your amazingly funny stories and in the process, lodges a bit of her steak in her throat, you have my full support to yank her out of her chair, spin her around and start squeezing her beneath her rib-cage until she spits up!
4. Train. If, while enjoying a peaceful, after dinner walk with your lover, you notice she has wandered into the path of a quickly approaching oncoming train, by all means, grab her by her arm and like the strong man you are, yank her backwards aggressively.

In the absence of the presence of fire, spiders, choking or trains, dad taught us boys there is never, ever, ever, ever, ever a justifiable reason for a man to strike a woman. Period. He said real men don’t do it. He then added this important definition about being a ‘real man’ which I want to share with all men today;

“Real men don’t allow other men to hit women either.”

I call upon my brothers-in-manhood everywhere to join with me in ZERO TOLERANCE for violence against women. Don’t hit and don’t tolerate hitting. That woman you see getting abused by her “man”, at the club or in the parking lot or even, oh let’s say, an elevator; intervene. Put yourself between the abuser and the victim. Is that dangerous? Could be. But it’s what a real man would do. Always remind yourself when you witness violence on a woman- that is somebody’s mother, daughter or sister. 
Just for the record, it IS your business if you decide to make it your business. In the Dunn household, my sons know we consider the safety of other women, our personal business, whether the abuser likes it or not. 
Lastly, a note to the abused women of the world- do not take one more punch, slap or kick from any man. There is NOTHING that makes it okay. Stop making excuses for him. He is a broken man and needs to be repaired before he is worthy of spending another second in your presence. Insist on it.

5 Bad Reasons Women Let Men Hit Them;
1. “He was drunk”. So what? He will be drunk again. And although I have personally never been drunk, I know many people who do occasionally get intoxicated- NONE of them hit their women. Your husband or boyfriend is not NORMAL. Stop trying to convince yourself he is.
2. “He’s under a lot of stress”. Real men deal with stress by hitting the gym, hitting a golf ball or even hitting the buffet. They do NOT hit women. Stress is not a gateway emotion to violence for healthy, normal men.
3. “I deserved it”. What???? No. There is nothing you or any woman can do to validate violence against you. Maybe you have done something so bad he leaves you, but violence is not on the list of options for him to choose from when he is upset. NEVER AN OPTION.
4. “His dad abused his mom. It’s all he knows.” When I hear that statement, it makes me throw up a little in my mouth. So what if he witnessed abuse as a child?? If anything, he knows better than others the hurt and pain that comes from abuse. In life we witness lots of things that are bad but we don’t then go integrate them into our own lives. If your man abuses you because he witness abuse, let him go witness therapy. Let him go witness a support group. Let him go witness life alone without you and the children. 
5. “It was only once. He apologized.” Statistics say that where there is a “first time”, there is a second time. Your response to the “first time” needs to send an incredibly clear message to your “man” that there will be no second time. Send that message so clearly it haunts him. Make a bold statement with action attached. It is the ‘action’ that will signal the level of your seriousness. That might be calling the police, it might be moving out for a week or two, it might be telling him to leave for a week or require immediate counseling. Your words to him after being hit MUST be followed up with immediate action to reinforce the true level of intolerance you have for violence against yourself.

You might be shocked to learn that someone in your life is an abuser, which means somebody in your life is a victim. Rather than guessing who it might be, just share this article with everyone so it reaches the ones who need to hear it most.
Abusers, be on notice- I’m watching. My sons are watching. And millions of other real men are watching. We WILL defend and protect your wife, your mother and your sister….even from you.

Troy Dunn

Are you giving life your best shot?

Are you giving life your best shot?

On friday night, I stumbled on a song "Do It by Pitbull ft. Mayer Hawthorne" and I picked three nice phrases from the song:

Everyday above the ground is a good day so I celebrate

She said "do you own Nike?"

I said "not yet", she said "then just do it"

"Give it your best shot"

I think the words in the sentences are very clear. Appreciate everyday and celebrate it because life is a privilege and a gift from God. Secondly, if you want to do something, DO IT. Everything will never be perfect for you if you want to do something, perfection comes when you are doing it and learning from your mistakes. Thirdly and most importantly, are you giving what it is that you want to do your best shot? Are you giving life generally your best shot? Is this the best you can offer life? Is this the best you can offer the people around you? Or do you want to be a mediocre for life? Are you the best at what you are doing currently? Do you believe you cannot be the best? If you die today, will you be happy and satisfied that you gave life your best shot? Try not to also be selfish and realize that your life can be an inspiration to someone whose morale is down and who has no hope again. So is your life inspiring people around you?

Remember and never ever forget that "ANY wage you ask of life, life would willingly pay" and "Life's battles don't always go to the stronger or faster man, but soon or late the man who wins is the man WHO THINKS HE CAN!" The mind is very powerful.

So for everybody including myself I think we should constantly ask ourselves everyday especially at night and in the morning and in everything that we do

Am I giving life my best shot?

Happy Sunday! Have a wonderful week ahead!

8 Rules to A Positive, Happy Life

1. Be Optimistic - This is the first and most important rule. You have to constantly think and believe that good things will happen to you and if you do, it sure will. Even if a bad thing happens, believe that it happened so that something very good will happen as they say "If one door doesn't close, another one won't open". Also be mindful that bad things or experiences make you stronger, they also help you to learn to avoid it and sometimes there is a good thing inside every bad thing or experience. So next time try to discipline yourself to find the good thing in the bad and what you would do better next time.
2. Feed your mind with positive/inspirational/motivational materials first thing in the morning and last thing at night before you go to bed - When you do this it feeds your subconscious mind which works while you are asleep and helps you to wake up positive and work positive throughout the day. Remember your thoughts are very powerful... You can read this for more understanding and more tips in http://wikihow.com/control-your-subconscious-min
3. Stop asking How Far? How you dey? Or What's Up? Except for people that you know are very positive stop asking those questions as you would most likely get negative answers and in the process of trying to sympathize with the person, you may become or start feeling negative. So instead ask What interesting thing has been happening with you or has happened since the last week or last time we saw and if the person says none, you can bring up an interesting thing happening around you or to you and tell the person about it or a good moment you both shared together. The important thing is when you leave the person, you want both of you feeling positive vibes.
4. Always always remember that your life is a gift and your present situation is somebody's prayer point. So be thankful and be hopeful remember "When there is life, there is hope."
5. Smile Often - This is important as it releases endorphins which is a chemical in your brain that leads to feelings of happiness. It also makes you look happy and in turn attracts happy people to you and makes other people happy.
6. Laugh Often - This is very important as this is the best medicine you can give to your body. It triggers healthy physical changes in the body, strengthens your immune system, boosts your energy, diminish pain and protect you from the damaging effect of stress. You can just stay and force yourself to laugh or remember an incident that was really funny and laugh your lungs out. You can also watch comedy videos on YouTube and Instagram. For YouTube I recommend searching for Basketmouth, Dan D'humorous, I go die, night of a thousand laughs. For instagram follow or check iamkanmi, oluwakaponeski, dontjealousme, thefoxhimself
7. Practice Positive Self Talk - If you say to yourself, "I can't do this, I'm going to fail", you will fail. However, if you say "I can do this. I know I can!” you're more likely to succeed. This process is known as "affirmation". Say to yourself aloud. I will be rich, I am happy, I will succeed etc.
8. Find something you can do and like doing and work to be very good at it that everybody or at least a lot of people will know you for that thing which could be a profession/soft skill/talent or trade. It will give you unlimited amounts of self-confidence and you will unconsciously become so happy because you know that you are very good at doing something and people recognize and appreciate you for it especially when it meets a need. Search for Brian Tracy - The Science of Self-Confidence on YouTube.

I Wish For You...

As promised, my wish for you this week culled from "100 Things to Always Remember and One Thing to Never Forget"

Happiness. Deep down within.
Serenity. With each sunrise.
Success. In each facet of your life.
Close and caring friends.
Love. That never ends.

Special memories. Of all the yesterdays.
A bright today. With much to be thankful for.
A path. That leads to beautiful tomorrows.

Dreams. That do their best to come true.
And appreciation. Of all the wonderful things about you.

Back to blogging: A weekend to Remember

I had a great weekend after attending the 80th Birthday party of my first neighbor Mrs. Olusola Adebule (Her house was opposite our house where we lived growing up and we used to go there and receive phone call and so nicknamed her - Madam Phone Call). What I liked about it was that it was a very classy party but didn't have the hall so full but still had enough people. This surprised me because to the best of my knowledge she knows a lot of people especially politicians, celebrities and very wealthy individuals but she chose to just celebrate with family, friends and neighbours. She also looked so young as though she were in her fifties or sixties. I now understood why she looked so young when I received the souvenir she shared to everyone (not sharing by herself of course but it came from her) of a book titled "100 Things to Always Remember and One Thing to Never Forget". Who gives that as a souvenir??? I will be posting some of the things to always remember to inspire everyone of you my readers.

On Sunday also I attended mass and learnt a lot which includes that we don't seem to remember what the lord has done for us but the one he hasn't yet done for us and the psalmist reminded us to "Never forget the deeds of the lord.". We were advised to carry our cross and ask God for the grace to carry our cross after all, No Pain, No Gain!

More posts and stories coming up....

Have a Lovely Week!!!

Don't Use Your Mouth And Swear For Yourself

What’s Your Affirmation?

By Fola Daniel Adelesi

A few years ago I heard a very simple but profound story of affirmation from a foremost motivational speaker in Nigeria and it has always worked for so many people. Reverend Sam Adeyemi said, ‘someone called you a fool. You will now turn around and say, ‘me! A fool? You call me a fool? Me, a fool?’ The person who called you a fool only said it once but you have it with your mouth three times then you will now act like a fool by going ahead to slap the person or doing some other nasty things.

What is your affirmation? What are the things that you are saying to yourself on daily basis about your life and your situation? Are you saying good things about your life or you are just affirming the negative situation of life to yourself?

Some people keep saying things like,‘we the poor people are suffering and the government is not helping us.’ I removed myself from that list. Anytime I now hear someone say we the poor people or we the masses I just ask the person to speak for him or herself. As for me, I am not a part of the poor people or the masses. I am also not saying that because I have some billions physically in my account. But you need to know that what I have in terms of intellectual resources and vision are a lot more than the physical cash and as I make demands on them, they translate to cash.

Too many of us affirm the present situations in our lives and we ultimately limit ourselves by temporary problems. Just because we can’t open our minds, or see a little further down the road, we fix ourselves permanently into a temporary situation with our affirmations.

There are too many people who are saying the wrong things to themselves and they are wondering why things are not changing. Some of our young ladies out of frustration have said, ‘Ah, I am finished! John has gone. I will never get another man to love me like John. In fact, there are no other men.’ Now someone makes that kind of statement and a few months down the line is expecting men to start coming. You have forgotten you said you were finished. To get a different result you should not only change your actions you have to change your affirmations.

A number of people in this country have also been saying nothing works in this country. You keep saying nothing works in this country and you don’t realize that your brain is taking that message in. So, you decide to start a business later and your mind keeps telling the business that nothing works. You don’t even remember what you said but the things you affirmed to yourself are the things happening in your business.

There is such an amazing power in the things that you constantly confirm or reinforce to your mind. When you hear things that you do not like, you should not say them with your mouth or repeat them to yourself. When you repeat them you are giving them the permission to take effect in your life.

Keep saying things are hard and that is what your entire system will believe and work with. So your mind thinks that nothing gets done the easy way. It always has to be the hard way. If your affirm to yourself that things are easy, you will come to realize how cheap those things can become.

If you have a child that seems to be lagging behind, don’t call that child names like many of our own parents did for us. What you say to your own child is a personal affirmation for your future. You are making an investment for your future and very soon you just might have a drop out.

You don’t have to join people to say what they are saying. Use the gate keeping theory as we do in the communication or journalism field. Filter what is allowed to get into your mind, take root and repeats itself to you constantly.

Remember, what you affirm is what you confirm and that’s what you get in life.

Photo Credit: Dreamstime | Warrengoldswain

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Fola Daniel Adelesi is a professional public speaker who also trains other speakers, an author, business consultant and highly skilled master of ceremony with excellent poise and diction. He was on the Debaters TV reality show season 1, presented ‘You Can’ on Radio Continental in 2011, did motivational segments on Galaxy TV from Dec 2008 to August 2009 and has authored 3 books including Writing Business Proposals.

culled from BellaNaija

WHO THINKS HE CAN

If you think you are beaten, you are,
If you think you dare not, you dont.
If you like to win, but you think you can't,
It is almost certain you won't.

If you think you'll lose, you're lost,
For out in the world we find,
Success begins with a fellow's will - 
It's all in the state of mind.

If you think you are outclassed, you are,
You've got to think high to rise,
You've got to be sure of yourself before
You can ever win a prize.

"Life's battles don't always go
To the stronger or faster man,
But soon or late the man who wins
Is the man WHO THINKS HE CAN!"

-Napoleon Hill

A Beautiful Lesson

Although it is old but with A beautiful lesson for all of us!

One day a man saw an old lady, stranded on the side of the road, but even in the dim light of day, he could see she needed help. So he pulled up in front of her Mercedes and got out. His Pontiac was still sputtering when he approached her. Even with the smile on his face, she looked worried. No one had stopped to help for the last hour or so. Was he going to hurt her? He didn't look safe; he looked poor and hungry.
He could see that she was frightened, standing out there in the cold. He knew how she felt. It was that chill which only fear can put in you.
He said, 'I'm here to help you, ma'am. Why don't you wait in the car where it's warm? By the way, my name is Bryan Anderson.'
Well, all she had was a flat tire, but for an old lady, that was bad enough.
Bryan crawled under the car looking for a place to put the jack, skinning his knuckles a time or two.. Soon he was able to change the tire. But he had to get dirty and his hands hurt.
As he was tightening up the lug nuts, she rolled down the window and began to talk to him. She told him that she was from St. Louis and was only just passing through. She couldn't thank him enough for coming to her aid.
Bryan just smiled as he closed her trunk. The lady asked how much she owed him. Any amount would have been all right with her. She already imagined all the awful things that could have happened had he not stopped.
Bryan never thought twice about being paid. This was not a job to him. This was helping someone in need, and God knows there were plenty, who had given him a hand in the past. He had lived his whole life that way, and it never occurred to him to act any other way.
He told her that if she really wanted to pay him back, the next time she saw someone who needed help, she could give that person the assistance they needed, and Bryan added, 'and think of me.'
He waited until she started her car and drove off. It had been a cold and depressing day, but he felt good as he headed for home, disappearing into the twilight.
A few miles down the road the lady saw a small cafe. She went in to grab a bite to eat, and take the chill off before she made the last leg of her trip home. It was a dingy looking restaurant. Outside were two old gas pumps. The whole scene was unfamiliar to her.
The waitress came over and brought a clean towel to wipe her wet hair. She had a sweet smile, one that even being on her feet for the whole day couldn't erase. The lady noticed the waitress was nearly eight months pregnant, but she never let the strain and aches change her attitude. The old lady wondered how someone who had so little could be so giving to a stranger. Then she remembered Bryan ....
After the lady finished her meal, she paid with a hundred dollar bill. The waitress quickly went to get change for her hundred dollar bill, but the old lady had slipped right out the door. She was gone by the time the waitress came back. The waitress wondered where the lady could be. Then she noticed something written on the napkin.
There were tears in her eyes when she read what the lady wrote:
'You don't owe me anything. I have been there too. Somebody once helped me out, the way I'm helping you. If you really want to pay me back, here is what you do: Do not let this chain of love end with you.'
Under the napkin were four more $100 bills.
Well, there were tables to clear, sugar bowls to fill, and people to serve, but the waitress made it through another day.
That night when she got home from work and climbed into bed, she was thinking about the money and what the lady had written. How could the lady have known how much she and her husband needed it? With the baby due next month, it was going to be hard...
She knew how worried her husband was, and as he lay sleeping next to her, she gave him a soft kiss and whispered soft and low, 'Every thing's going to be all right. I love you, Bryan Anderson.'

There is an old saying... 'What goes around comes around.' God works in mysterious ways and sometimes puts people in our lives for a reason.