To be Successful, one Most Live His Life in "Day Tight Compartments"

In a book titled How to Stop Worrying and Start living, which is a book that I believe should be taught in every school, Andrew Carnegie kept referring to the importance of living your days in "day tight compartments" as a key to success.

Carnegie referred to Sir William Osler who co-founded Johns Hopkins University of Medicine, perhaps the most respected institute of its kind in the world today. In medical school, Osler was an unsure, worry addled young man who was constantly ruminating over the "what ifs" about his future to the point where it became a detriment to his health and the very future he held so dear.

However, there was one sentence that eliminated his anxiety and caused him to become one of the most successful people of our times: "our business is not to see what lies dimly at a distance, but to do what lies clearly at hand" With this statement, he went on to become so successful that it took thousands of pages of writing to document his life.

While speaking to a graduating class at Johns Hopkins many years later (has I've read), he stressed the importance of living in "day tight compartments", since worrying about the past, or the future, or even five minutes ahead can cause moments, even years and lifetimes to pass by.

As Andrew Carnegie stated in his brilliant book, think of your mind as a giant ship traveling the oceans. In order to keep it afloat and steady, you have to close the bulkheads to keep excess water wait from knocking it off kilter. If you are unable to close the bulkheads of your mind and stray from what is in front of you, you will wallow, flail and sink like the Titanic.

The secret to his success can be traced back to the bible. While I am a particularly religious person myself, I do ascribe to the messages of Jesus Christ who said "give us our daily bread." That was it, there was no tomorrow. All we could ask for is our daily bread. He also mentioned the importance of thinking nothing of the future, since there were enough troubles to deal with today.

So, when you have a mountain to climb, even if it is literally Mt. Everest, remember you are not climbing a mountain. You are taking one step and that's all you have to do, and all you should ever focus on, and the thought of the mountain will never overwhelm you.

PAST BOTHERS US

So many things took our time

We’ve left the real road out

But the facts had stolen our facts

The heavens calls us to live

What can we but do?

Daily the inclination to live

How can we pay our dues?

Something is calling us back

Our thoughts break upon us

We’ve relent in doing good

How can we go in this bus?

We’ve changed for another day

Our pasts are for true lesson

Though none of us knows change

We are bitter thinking treason

But this change must help

Salau O John©

The Biggest Obstacle to Your Success - Yourself

Robert Allen, author of the book The One Minute Millionaire, said that many people do not live the lives they dream about not because they're not as smart or as creative as the rich, but because they simply can't imagine themselves that successful.

Many people put a great deal of value on knowledge and facts, and early on dreams and imaginations are dismissed as childish. However, as Albert Einstein once said, imagination is more powerful than knowledge.

Personally, I have heard people with terrific ideas for inventions, businesses, or books to write but they think themselves out of it and find a dozen reasons not to do it. What are they afraid of? That if they fail, the word loser will be tattooed on their forehead forever and they will appear on national TV for all to scoff at?

Failure is just a stepping stone. When you were a kid you started out by falling off a bike. To find a mate you have to risk, and probably experience rejection. And some of the most successful people in history have gone bankrupt many times.

Personally, I would feel better about myself knowing I had the courage to pursue a dream to break out of the world of office cubicles and commuter drones and fail than not try, which is the ultimate failure.

I admire the kid who has the courage to pick up that guitar and refuse to listen to his doubting family members who tell him to get real, or the person who actually finds his or her way to Nollywood to stare insurmountable odds in the face and still have the courage and focus to give it their all, even though failure is likely. Even if they never make a living doing what they set out to do, they are more inspiring than the average Joe who imprisons himself in a paycheck to paycheck existence and the comfort of living for the weekends and primetime TV.

In order to get over the fear of failure, you need to study the mindset of successful people. They are able to detach themselves from their work and achievements. They don't take too much responsibility for their failures or successes. Instead, they just plant the seeds for what they want to do it, tend to their craft like a Gardner, and let it grow.

Most people are so attached to their career that they feel like if they lost their job, they'd be nobody. However, the career is just a set of activities; it is separate from them as a person.

So, instead of focusing on not failing or thinking failure is not an option, simply throw away the idea of even having a self, or self esteem, which are just ideas that you needlessly are brainwashed to defend and build a wall of self defeating thoughts to defend against it being exposed or put at risk. Just become a Gardner for your success. Without acknowledging the self, or self esteem in the first place, you will not care if you fail, so you will throw caution to the wind and pursue bigger fish.

Sow your seeds, and let your success grow, and feel happy that you have done all you can do. Think not of failure, but focus on success. If failure happens, be thankful that you learned what not do, and that you've crossed one more stepping stone on the road to success.

ARE WE SAINTS

It’s amazing how the world goes

Thinking we know all the flows

Pointing the fingers forgetting the other

And walking in the dark banter

Who knows and who sees?

A question we pose too free

The coin sides are the same

Even our excuses are lame

He is the bad egg we say

But within we hide our tray

The confirmation of tomorrow speaks

All cisterns will soon leak

Who will wash the dirty linins?

The heavens will send lightening

We shall see perfection today

But how can that we say

Salau O John©

Building Blocks For Self-esteem

When we're hesitant to do something we've never tried before or afraid we're not good enough to be around certain types of people, we are sometimes told by others that we lack self-esteem.

Although it's easy to understand what it is, it's obviously not that easy to achieve because there are literally thousands of books and courses on how to have self-esteem. Many go to therapy for years at a high cost in order to have it even though it sometimes remains forever illusive and distant from their grasp.

It seems to me that it would be easier just to shut the door on our insecurities and reinvent ourselves. This would more than likely make what we want happen rather than waiting for life to happen to us.

This could take a little work, but not much in the scheme of years of therapy or deep study. While we're involved in all this self-improvement stuff life is quickly passing us by.

To avoid wasting time stressing over what can't be changed, here is a practical guide that will help you overcome some of the most common areas where our self-esteem is attacked. Fix these and you'll begin to notice that you like who you are when you look in the mirror every morning.

First, see yourself in control of who you are. This will keep you composed and confident no matter what the challenge. And when you feel a bit more challenged than you can handle, look to God for greater strength. He really wants to help. So we should let Him.

Following some great Biblical advice for wisdom, don't engage in gossip about others. Doing this is cruel and can have serious repercussions, but it will also cause you to think that others are criticizing and judging you. This will keep your self-esteem in low gear.

On the other hand, one of the best ways to have confidence is to stop comparing yourself to others. Start seeing the uniqueness of your character. Make a list of all the great things that make you different in a positive way. Feel good about who you are, it feels good!

Taking on new changes when it's beneficial to your goals or personal situation will also build your confidence to a new level of accomplishment. Change challenges us and tests our flexibility, adaptability and alters the way we think (for the good).

Changes might make life difficult for awhile. They may even cause some stress, but change can help us find ways to improve ourselves. Change will be here forever, so we should always be ready to embrace it when it's beneficial to our well being.

Going with the flow of change will also help you avoid wrapping yourself up with all the negativity in the world. Keep your mind centered upon what you can do to control your life than what appears too difficult to handle.

For instance don't react to all the negative news you read about in the newspaper or see on television. Believe by faith that you are safe, that you have money in difficult financial times, and that you know how to make the best out of the worst situations.

In conclusion self esteem is a choice that brings about self improvement, true assessment, and determination. You can begin putting up the building blocks of self esteem by being positive. Be contented and happy. Be appreciative. Never miss an opportunity to compliment others. A positive way of living will help you build self-esteem every day.

WE’LL GET THERE

Somehow we all get there

The place we all dream and envisioned

Though the journey shows no care

The joys at the end will sun

The way we go lit may hurt

As thorns pricks our steps

We are learners for the slot

The day will speak soon alive

Maybe we try to run away

Just a little longer holds all

As our hearts builds the say

We are made at the end

Salau O John©

Living The Good Life Now!

Every now and then I hear someone expressing wishful thoughts for their future. They sigh and make a promise to give more money when they become rich or they profoundly claim that as soon as they get their retirement money they'll take that vacation they've been dreaming about. Saddest of all are the parents who promise to spend more time with their children when they don't have so much to do.
Such are the visions of the hopeful dreamers who never put faith and action into their desires. What they don't realize is that the money, the trip and whatever else they wish to have must be put into creation today. Yes, that's right! This moment is when your dreams begin, not tomorrow.

Many sorrowful dreamers have reached the end of their lives in sadness and alone because they believed that once everything they wanted became reality, they would have more money, they would get closer to family and most assuredly they would make a difference to the world.

Dear friend, the time to share your life, your love and your money is today. This moment is the only point in time when you can achieve anything. While each moment continues to pass away, so does your life -- unless you decide to live it.

Don't wait until you're rich to live your life or share what you have. Give from your heart, your talents and what money you do have with joy and faith. I can assure you that God will bless you with great opportunities you would never expect as a result. This is how it works. You care about others beyond yourself and desire their success as if it were your own.

Do you believe you have nothing to give? Maybe someone only needs for you to listen or share a DVD of their favorite music. You can take someone to the grocery store when their car breaks down or you can give away nice clothes you no longer wear.

I know what you're thinking. Someone is going to take advantage of you. That's right, some people will try. But you'll lovingly and firmly teach them to stand on their own to develop their characters and find their own way. We're all in need of each other's wisdom, so never be afraid to share yours when the moment calls for a strong plan of action or an important insight.

Giving is much simpler than we make it out to be and it always blesses us with new opportunities to share. We just have to stop waiting to "get" and be ready to "give."

If you have no idea where to begin, think about someone you know that let their life slip away without event and give them something special to wake up an empty dream or fulfill an empty promise. It only takes a few words or a simple prayer.

START NOW

A little goes farther than nothing

Though much is desired to succeed

The heart and body connive in receiving

A man must look for a proceed

The fact is buttered by knowledge

But without action all is damned

Who could play and not pledge?

Man without plan is doomed

All that will be can’t be

As knowledge must be used

Though all seek to be free

Those in obedience are used

We’ll get somewhere someday

Though the roads are different

Today speaks of much to relay

We all seek true affluence

Salau O John©

Use Your Fears To Succeed

Fear is one of the biggest reasons people don't move forward with their passions and take on life with the "power of choice" we all possess. Believe it or not, there is no book in the universe with your name written on it that says you were meant to suffer and never have what you want.

Fear is one of the biggest reasons people don't move forward with their passions and make their dreams reality. Everyone can overcome fears and we all need to do it! We need to knock down the strongholds of human reasoning and destroy the false arguments that keep talking us out of creating what we want. We need to expand our minds and hearts with the art of curiosity and imagination and become co-creators with God. He tells us that all things are possible, so we need to get out of our mediocre thinking.

Many people would rather make excuses or blame others than change. They can claim to be shy or a victim of a bad childhood, but when all is said and done people who have faced the most difficult of circumstances have achieved more success in their one lifetime than perhaps the collective lifetimes of hundreds of average thinking people who have spent their lives believing in their fears.

Everyone has fears. They can catapult us to greatness or they can let us fall into an abyss of darkness that leaves us to believe we're stuck. This is where many people are today. They can't comprehend that they have choices.

Having fears is natural and we can actually use them to achieve what we want. The process is like learning to ride a bicycle. There are many fears and failures along the way but as we pick ourselves up and keep going we eventually learn to stay on the bike and become proficient at riding.

By identifying with this common childhood achievement, you can see how important it is to regard overcoming failure as a learning experience that will also bring success as long as you don't quit practicing to overcome fear.

This is how we can turn negative circumstances into positive situations. Take the fear of flying for instance. I read of a man who had a great desire to get his private pilots license but he was afraid to fly. Instead of letting go of his dreams, he signed up for lessons anyway. This didn't change his fear of flying but what he told himself everyday did.

At night before he fell asleep he pictured himself maneuvering acrobatics in the air to an audience below. He intentionally avoided any thoughts of fear or nausea that tried to creep into his mind. Then each morning before his lessons he would envision himself in the sky, feeling exhilarated instead of dizzy. He created a pilots license that resembled the real thing with his name on it and put it in his wallet. Every now and then he would take it out and look at it while he envisioned himself flying solo.

Eventually he overcame his fear and became a successful pilot, teaching others to fly who had the same fear he had. What they learned affected every part of their lives because he made them believe that no matter what they wanted to do, they had the choice to succeed over whatever obstacles they faced.

CALLING FOR TIME

Here goes the impatience of now

Going here and there for joy

None understands this somehow

Time and chance awaits for now

Action speaks louder than plans

As success is unrelenting in life

The understanding of a true man

Many are searching to be factual

The truth of life bothers all

As we were born naked but different

And life brings its own call

While man seek true purpose

Calling for time to speak

Our individuality says it all

Though we lay life’s tricks

Our time comes to burn tall

Salau O John©