By Dayo Olomu
Dayo Olomu was born in 1965 in Britain by Nigerian parents. He has, over the years, used his multilayered talents as a writer, motivational speaker and leadership coach, among others, to impact his generation, while also using his Foundation to bring succor to the financially challenged demographics across the continents.
Olomu’s latest vision is to leave a legacy of service for the future generations by inspiring and enabling young folks to identify their purpose and embrace a positive, can – do spirit. This is now what gets him out of bed every morning.
Educated in Nigeria and in the UK, he has lived in London since 1996 where he achieved recognition as one of the most successful Nigerians in the Diaspora, as evidenced by the over 150 awards he has received. He has decided to up his ante by moving from success to significance.
In this piece, he lists 20 ways you can reinvent yourself. Read on:
How I re-invented myself, starting out as a postman to where I am today, is a story I like to tell to inspire others to do the same. We all reach a point in our lives when we need to re-invent ourselves. Whether it’s personal, professional, or both, life sometimes doesn’t go exactly as planned. We’ve all been there or will go through it at some point in our lives. You’re not alone, no matter how you feel.
If you feel stuck or have recently lost everything, then now is the perfect time to reinvent yourself so that you can go on to live the life that you always dreamt of.
To ‘re-invent’ yourself means to change how you see the world, your inner programming and self-image. This can take some time and effort because we become a certain way often because of who we ‘think’ we are and how we see ourselves.
As author Tracy Goss said, “Re-invention is putting at stake the success you’ve become for the power of making the impossible happen.”
The journey to re-inventing myself started on my birthday, 25 June 2000, in Jerusalem, where I went on a Holy Pilgrimage. I was a postman then and 35 years old. I visited all the Holy sites and wrote 40 things I wanted to achieve by the time I was 40 years and pasted it on the famous Wailing Wall. When I got to my hotel room, I told myself what I wanted to be, do and have in 20 years’ time when I would be 55. The goal became clear in 2003 when I was the publisher of a music and movie magazine, chairing the board of a radio station and was invited to join the board of a television stationHere are 20 ways to reinvent yourself: –
CLEAR VISION
There’s always a need to invent, that’s what drives our world. Civiliazation would be static if there’re no inventions. When something is invented, it solves a problem and then, at some point in time, what’s invented, the device or even a concept begins to outlive its usefulness.
New challenges crop up that the idea or device can not solve. At this point, re-invention becomes a logical imperative. Let’s look at the issue of typing. Books used to be writtten in long hand, until the manual typewriter was invented. With the advent of electricity, came the electric typewrter. Over time, the typewriter was re-invented when the computer age emerged.
The computer, now a multi-purpose gadget, is a vast improvement on the typewriter. With the computer you can see what you type on the screen. This is just a classic example of re-invention. From this narrative, we see clearly that we re-invent what’s already invented. One thing to note in the evolution of the typewriter is that, the inventors were clear about the vision of what they wanted to achieve.
What do you want to reinvent yourself as? That’s the first question. You must be clear about where you are and where you are going. I was once a postman, I decide that from there, I would go into media, become a media guru, retire at 55, write a book on my experience and become a motivational speaker. Well, I did write a book to mark my 40th birthday and I became a motivational speaker.
Create a vision for your future and establish new goals. After identifying what needs to be changed, it’s time to plan out the future that you want for yourself. What do you need to do to make this a reality? Do you need to move? Do you need to go back to school? Figure this out and establish the goals to achieve your vision.
Write lists. Start by writing down a life map and making a graphical representation of your passions and priorities. No matter the size of the goal, spend every morning writing down the reasonable things that you want to accomplish. These words that you have written can motivate you to turn those ideas into action. I do this and it helps.
Writting down goals is even in line with the scriptures. We see in Habakkuk. 2:2, “And the Lord answered me, and said, write the vision, and make it plain upon tablets that he may run that readeth it.” From this reference, we can see clearly that it is necessary to put down our thoughts on paper. One of the many reasons why you should write down your vision or goals, as it were, is that you can evaluate it from time to time. Even Architects put down their plans on paper. Writing down a vision enables you to remember your goals easily, and improve on them.
There’s something about vision I want you see in Hab. 2:3; “For the vision is yet for an appointed time, but at the end it shall speak, and not lie, though it tarry, wait for it; because it will surely come, it will not tarry” (KJV). Every vision has an appointed time. Time is key to vision and its acualization, because there’s time for everything.
When a vision becomes stale, it’s time to re-invent it. That was what I did in Jerusalem when at 35, working as a postman, I wrote out a 40-point vision and prayed over it and pasted it on the fabled Wailing Wall. Twenty years after, I can look back now and count my blessings; my many sucesses.
You have to keep re-inventing yourself. That’s how to guarantee relevance and a longer shelf life in the public domain. Now, having apprehended most of my goals in my 40-point agenda, I have decided to move from sucess to significance. I have a new book; Quantum Leap, From Success to Significance, 7 Steps on How To Use Your Talents To Excel and Achieve Dominance in The Market Place. This is my new baby I have to nurture in midlife.
CONNECT AND DISCONNECT
I changed my association from the street crowd and started moving with those who are going where I wanted to be – Taiwo at Royal Mail was by best friend. He took me to Finsbury Park Christian Fellowship. I then stopped attending the Celestial Church, because I felt I had outgrown what they were teaching. Connect with people. Don’t connect with just anyone.
Connect with the right people at the right time. These should be individuals who inspire you and who you can learn from. With social media, you can connect with these people easily. But, don’t rule out doing some old fashioned networking. Attend conferences and industry events as well. Find time to disconnect. Alternately, you want to find time to unplug. Emails, texts, and social media notifications will distract you during your re-invention process. It may be hard to believe, but the world is not going to end if you don’t have a Facebook status update for a couple of days.
Yes, the world never ends because you decide to disconnect from certain things, not even the internet which is now the foundation of our current civilization. Taking it much further, disconnection serves good purposes when you want to re-invent. There’re certain times an aircraft has to shed some baggage to be able fly normally, otherwise flight could be endangered.
Ocean vessels also cruise with a specified weight of cargo, lest they sink. It’s the same with humans. At certain points in life, you have to pull out of some relationships, some affiliations, that have become liabilities. Not all friendships or relationships are good for all eternity.
Many affiliations are only right for a season. Again like the Bible says in Ecl. 3:1 – “To everything there’s a season and time to every purpose under heaven.” Every relationship has an expiry date, except with your family. To continue to nurture ties that are no longer beneficial to your progress, goals or aspirations is to jeopardize your destiny.
When you are overweight, you fall sick, you then have to shed weight to regain your health. There’re many things in your life you have to shed in order to prosper. When you want to re-invent, there are many people who would oppose you because they know that your pace is about to change. And being unable to catch up with you because you are moving on a greater speed, they become unhappy thinking they’d be left in the lurch; these folks have to leave your life because they cannot support your dream.
Birds of a feather, flock together. On the flip side, the right connection is most desirable if you want to re-invent yourself. The importance of this fact cannot be overstated. When I joined Toastmasters Internationally, my network expanded considerably. I learned how to speak as a professional speaker and I got a foot-hold in my profession.
When I returned to the land of my birth, the UK in 1996, that change of location from my native Nigeria helped. I went to various schools for my higher education; my new classmates from different backgrounds enriched my contacts, which eventually became a game changer. Connections matter.
You need to get connected, to be able the soar to the next career level that could increase your net social value. We cannot exhaust this discussion on connections because it is crucial to success in any vocation in life. So, get the right connection, disconnect from the wrong contacts.
3. CHOOSE YOUR MENTORS
Along the years, I have also had mentors who supported me. Based on what I have learnt, I would recommend that you have mentors in your life. Locate someone who can help guide you through this journey. If you can’t find an actual mentor, you can always turn to the words of wisdom that others have shared in books, articles, or tweets. Find a mentor. “Someone has to show you how to move and breathe,” writes James Altucher. There are three types of mentors out there.
Direct: The mentor is in front of you and will guide you. Indirect. These are mentors who aren’t physically with you, like authors. Everything is a mentor. Altucher states, “If you are a zero, and have passion for reinvention, then everything you look at will be a metaphor for what you want to do. “If you have mentor that insists that you do things their way, that’s fine. Learn it their way and then do it your way.
Lord Bacon said, “A man who is learning should be content to believe what he is told”. Obviously, you’ve little choice until you have learned, you first accept all you are told; then you begin to unlearn what you were told; you begin to unlearn what you considered wrong. You’d always need a mentor at some point in life.
For someone who wants to repackage and re-invent, mentoring is important. Mentors are life teachers who help us mould our life. They energize, inspire and give the directions often required to succeed in life. I have passed through many mentors both physical and virtual, to get to where I am today.
I mentioned the celebrated entertainment Editor of the PUNCH in Nigeria, Pastor LADI AYODEJI who introduced me to show business when I was still a teenager. There are several others too numerous to mention. The authors of dozens of books I have read, have also influenced me in different ways. Mentors challenge you with their incredible rags to riches stories.
Some snatch success from the jaws of defeat. Different mentors help in different ways. This, I learned from experience in my forays into different professions. A mentor in show business certainly cannot help you in the area of financial education or public speaking. As I move into leadership coaching, I know I have to get new mentors, especially those who have some calling in the gospel vineyard.
Leaders who have the call of God on their lives, with quality services as proven leaders in their professions, have the perfect combination I need right now. You need mentors who are already have what you aspire to become so that you could learn from their experience in navigating their pathways to success. Mentors who fit into your mould, like I said earlier may not necessarily be physical.
Their articles, tapes, books or speeches may be just enough to stir up or awaken the giant in you. One of the benefits of mentors is that when the going gets tough, they could help with timely counsel and emotional support. Sometimes that’s all you need, to get back on your feet when circumstances knock you down. For me as a Christian, I now realize that the ultimate mentor is the Holy Spirit, the third member of the Godhead, whose perfect counsel never fails. His indwelling power enables me to wade through the storms of life whenever they arise.
4. LEARNING
I went back to the university to pick a degree and also I joined Toastmasters in 2003 to develop my public speaking skills. Read. Don’t just read, read a lot. It’s one of the best ways to develop your mind, imagination, creativity, and discover new things. Here are a few of my top choices. Learn: Whether it’s reading or attending a workshop or webinar, find ways to enhance your knowledge. It will make you a well-rounded individual and help you grow, both personally and professionally. Lifelong learning also makes you more motivated, develop mental skills, and introduces you to new people and thoughts. I like to do this by reading books.
To underscore the importance of life-long learning, I’d like you to read what my first mentor, Pastor Ladi Ayodeji wrote in one his Motivation Power has syndicated columns which is published in one of Nigeria online portals and the DAILY SUN newspaper. The piece is titled, Today A Reader, Tomorrow A Leader:
“What separates the boys from the men is the capacity to perform when it is clearly impossible. To do the impossible, you need a higher level of motivation than you have right now. And where do you get motivated or inspired? It is by reading good authors who inspire with their exciting narratives. Books are packed with life-changing thoughts.
The word of God, the Bible, came to us through the written word. Christians call it logos; its Greek name. Books saved us from losing the world’s irreplaceable treasures, in the form of landmark theories, thesis and records that transformed the world. Science changed the world. It came through books. That’s why we must read to develop to our full potential.
To be a leader in the modern world, you must be a reader. No society tolerates an ill-informed leader nowadays. Semi-educated leaders have ruled many societies in the past, and wrought havoc; we know that half education is a dangerous thing. This half education is the bane of Christendom today. Many folks who are not well instructed in things of the Spirit have set up ministries, creating confusion and mayhem in the Body of Christ.
Some of our politicians and professionals don’t read. Even those who claim to be educated do not update their learning. It has been proved that five years after graduation, you may not be able to pass your terminal examination if you were to resist, no matter how brilliant you are. Unless you refresh and study all over again, you can’t pass your terminal examination.
I have noticed that barely a week after reading a book, I hardly remember eighty to ninety percent of the contents. Not that I have memory leak or a poor retentive memory, not at all. Of course, as we grow old, our memory tends to dim. We tend to become forgetful as we age”.
There’s no better way to put it. British philosopher, Francis Bacon said “Reading makes a man whole”.
5. CHANGE OLD THINKING
I remodeled my thinking to believe that I have to take 100% responsibility for my life. That if you try to evolve and not revolve, you will attract enemies, and they may not hate you but hate what you are doing. Get rid of the stuff holding you back. Do you have a shirt that doesn’t fit?
But you hold onto because you like the style? How about that uncomfortable chair in your living room? The books collecting dust? Physical items can hold us back emotionally and physically since they either bring us down or just get in the way. Donate or throw away anything that’s holding you back from going forward.
To live with an old thinking is to like living with old outdated furniture and fixtures in a modern home. It looks out of place; it is old. It is like putting old wine into a new wine skins explained in the parable of Jesus. Most people are trapped in the past and become a hostage to past achievements. By living in the glory of the past you cannot do new exploits. Today’s challenges are hard enough, and they obviously call for new efforts.
You have to remodel and remould your thinking to conform to new realities, otherwise you’d be stranded in the journey of life. Every age produces its fashion, trends, culture, attributes and lifestyle. You’ve got to key into that. Those who resist change often end up a victim of change. I realized that many years ago. I know I had to recalibrate to move to a new level.
Toyota Motor company had an advertisement slogan that says, “New thinking, New product” Producers of goods and services have the understanding that they must produce new models that appeal to contemporary consumers, to stay in the market. As products have a shelf life and expire so does every other things in life.
There is a change of paradigm everywhere you look; everyone, everything and every circumstances must change or be changed. If you don’t do away with needless objects, and they become trash and nobody lives with trash. At a stage, they become a nuisance. Some old stuff that were indispensable only yesterday, becomes a nuisance when they outlive their usefulness. We live in a world where you must constantly add value to stay relevant. This is a world of champions, it does not recognize second – best, only the best, the very best, enjoys all the accolades.
That’s why you should discard old thinking that no longer serve any purpose. If you watch closely you’d observe that life itself is all about constant re-invention. When you reach a peak, you start having a fresh desire or new urge for new achievements, especially for the progressive – minded individuals. Like I mentioned earlier, many people may hate your guts because you are constantly aspiring to do well, to excel and be the best you can be.
You must attract enemies if you are doing well. Those who fail are often ignored, it is the successful folks that are the target of envy, but never allow such actions bother you. What’s important is to do well without having to hurt anymore. If you find yourself in the midst of such enemies, simply walk away. They are not your crowd so look for those who believe in you; those are the folks you should hang out with to re-invent yourself. You may also have to change your location.
6. RUN YOUR RACE AT YOUR PACE
It is your vision, it is your race, so run it at your pace. Don’t allow somebody’s opinion to become your reality. Chose freedom. Don’t listen to the naysayers who are planning your life for you – even if it’s your family. Do what you want to do. It’s your life. People might get a little disappointed at first, but ultimately they’ll have to respect your decision.
The fact is that not everybody will buy into your vision. Indeed, most people would oppose it therefore, never surrender leadership of your life to others. If you don’t manage your life, other people would help you manage it. Normally every bottle stands on its own bottom you cannot live life based on other people’s opinion when you do that, you risk being tossed about by every wind of doctrine or philosophy.
At the end of the day, when things don’t go right, people would lay all the blame at your doorstep. Not everything will go right for you, mistakes are bound to occur along the way for anyone who is pursuing a vision. To avoid error is not to venture at all, and we all know that nothing ventured, nothing gained.
Those who are afraid to try never succeed at anything. However, the issue here is about pace. Everyone walks with their own legs so, your pace is entirely your personal responsibility. If you walk at the pace of your rival, you’d fall flat on your face and people would laugh at you. You don’t have to impress anyone with how you run with your vision. Everyone has their life to live, everyone has their time.
Remember, the Bible said in Habakkuk that the vision is for an appointed time, and that you should wait for it for it. If you don’t wait for your time, your vision cannot run on any other persons time. When you plant a seed, you wait for it to germinate. There are seeds that sprout within months; some take years like the fabled Chinese bamboo.
A steady pace is what makes champions of marathon runners. I know this because I run the marathon myself. Slow and steady wins the race, according to a popular adage. In races, there’s a time to gather momentum, and there’s a time to speed up. Therefore, know when to up your ante. Some visions last a life time while some, can be actualized in months, depending on what project it is.
Choose your freedom. Everything has its own dynamics. You have to choose your rhythm, your altitude, your pace and your focus, because you alone know the end of your journey. Never listen to naysayers every vision has enemies. Even when they have little to do with it, some people just hate the guts of those who dare to be different. Don’t listen to those kind of folks.
Nothing succeeds like success, according to one maxim. Even your enemies will celebrate you when you make it. Just get ahead with your vision at your own pace. You have no one to impress, because you are not at the mercy of anyone, and you do not need the permission of anyone to succeed in life. Move at your pace.
7. LEAVE YOUR COMFORT ZONE
To leave your comfort zone means you must be adventurous. I am not talking about thrill seekers who just want to have fun. Real adventurers are those who are looking for some treasures or seeking to achieve some nobel goals. Adventurers normally leave their homes to risk their lives in far-flung places; sometimes travelling on turbulent waters, jungles, to reach their destinations.
Empire builders, explorers, scientists, inventors, trail blazers, are known to leave their comfort zones before they achieve. Leaving the comfort zone is the hallmark of achievers, it requires courage. The successess I have achieved in life are because I dared to leave my comfort zone.
When I left Nigeria, my native countr,y to return to Britain, the land of my birth, I actually left Lagos for Europe in search of the proverbial golden fleece. Thank God I made that crucial move in 1996. It was that singular move that change my story. I probably would have remained a struggling entertainment promoter or at best, a local champion in the show business world over there in the African nation.
My narrative changed dramatically because I opened new vitsas and I embraced new realities and boundless opportunities that a developed economy offers to creative young people. When I arrived in London, I didn’t find it easy, but overtime I found my feet. Now, I am standing firm on a good foundation from where I plan to move to another level.
Your comfort zone may well be your secure job, family, primary calling, profession or business. You have to launch out to other zones and explore the possibilities there. Chances are, bigger successes may be waiting for you outside your regular business, if you just step out and try something else, somewhere. People avoid unfamiliar terrain, but sometimes, that’s where the big breaks are.
The Americans landed on the moon after the Russians launched the first man in orbit. Both became super powers because they dared to leave their comfort zones. They subsequently reaped the gain of being pioneers of space technology.
All adventurers reap huge benefits when they succeed. Nothing ventured, nothing gained. Never be afraid to try new things. Even if you fail the first time, it is just a learning curve. You’d have learned not to take the failure route, so , next time, having learned your lesons, you succeed. Moreover, the experience, you gain when you fail, puts you at an advantage over somone who hasn’t tried the route you have followed.
Man is constantly evolving. We live to conquer our environment and make the planet earth a better place of habiitation. We can’t do this if we rest on our oars. You have to get out and reach out and re-invent yourself. Leaving your comfort zone helps you to do that.
8. PRIORITIZE
Try to dedicate at least one hour of each day in accomplishing your goals. Remember, knock out those most important tasks first, so that you can focus on the smaller tasks that will also help you achieve you goal. And, don’t forget to use calendars. alarms, and apps to help you prioritize your tasks and keep you productive.
Priority is a function of context. It depends on what you want and the importance you attach to things in your scale of preference per time. Sadly, most people fail to get their priorities right, which is why they don’t succeed in life. I know this from experience.
First thing must always come first in your order of things. If you hope to succeed in life, you must get your priorities right. This is where imitation could be very dangerous. You need to get organized. A well-organized person stands a better chance of succeeding at any venture.
You decide what’s important to you per time. When you wake up, you plan your day. It is better to write down what you want to do. This is where priorities come in. You may decide to complete yesterday’s assignments before you embark on new ones. Whatever it is you are doing, deal with the vital issues first Then, attend to the others in order of importance. That is how to maximize your time.
A daily list of your plans enables you to know how to achieve the most you can within the limited time available. You must realize that time is never enough to do anything. Take full advantage of every opportunity and learn to take your chances. Time waits for no one.
Today’s major issues may become minor tomorrow. In fact, what you consider indispensable today could be unimportant tomorrow. Never be a slave to priorities. What that means is that you should be flexible. Usually, circumstances of the moment often compel us to reorder our priorities.
Sometimes, when we reorder our priorities, it turns out to be a game changer. One middle-aged man decided to quit his job to spend more time with his wife. He had enough resources to guarantee a fairly comfortable retirement. Rather than keep accumulating wealth, he preferred to enjoy the company of his lonely wife. Is he foolish? No. In his younger, more active years, he certainly won’t take such decision.
Therefore, to a great extent, circumstances could determine your priorities. Young people should learn to order their priorities because that’s a key factor of success. You should be very realistic. Be your own worst critic, but you don’t have to be harsh on yourself.
Your scale of preference must always change per time, because the world is constantly in a flux. On account of my age, I have now decided to pay more attention to my health. At 50, there are things I don’t do anymore because it would harm my health. If I fail to take more care of myself, I risk killing myself. So, I take things easy now. I am very selective in my outings. I maximize my time. I don’t give attention to frivolities. If you are married and have children, you must take them into consideration. You ought to make your family the focus of your attention. After God, your family should come first. If your job schedule is tight, you should adjust things, so that your wife and children rank high in your priorities. They need quality attention.
Don’t make foolish choices. You have to know that leisure cannot come before work. Relaxation comes after the day’s work. You work hard and play hard. You use the reward of your labour to pay for leisure. If you play too much, and neglect your work, you’d pay dearly for it.
It is sensible to give quality attention to what pays you a good dividend. Don’t get involved with friends who add no value to your life.
The lesson here is that priority may not necessarily be a question of merit. It all depends on what you consider more important than others. You don’t owe anyone any explaination as to why you order your priorities. One man’s meat is another man’s poison, so get your priorities right.
9. BUILD YOUR NARRATIVE
Tell your story. Personal brand -How can we stand out from among our competitors, focus on our personal abilities and positively influence our targets? The answer lies in the concept of Personal Branding, a professional and effective way to present ourselves to others, which is another key success factor. In these highly competitive times, people are constantly upgrading and updating their training in every field. Therefore, you need to market yourself properly to obtain a new contract, or the job or promotion you are looking for.
Your passion, personal knowledge, experience and abilities are essential, but you also need to present them as effectively as possible. You can do it by developing your personal brand, a mark that distinguishes you from all other people. According to Daniel Priestley in his book, Key Person of Influence, “Almost every two years you’re going to sit down and dream up a whole new plan for what you do and how you do it. If you don’t, you’ll be overtaken by those who do.
So if there’s no security in job, anymore and if businesses are constantly changing, where does someone go to create certainty? You go to your personal brand, your network, your experiences and passion.” Hence it is important that you design and create your personal brand.
When I was growing up, it was a taboo to tell your own story or attempt to sell yourself. Even to this day, some professionals like lawyers and medical doctors, do not advertise for ethical reasons, which is understandable.
Now, with the advent of the information age, those who are not bound by professional ethics freely advertise themselves. In some cases you just have to tell your own story otherwise nobody would help you tell it.
My followers on the social media know my story, because I have told it so many times, that the Dayo Olomu brand is now easily remembered. I have created my own persona, and along with it, comes my first business brand, DO & Associates, using the intials of my name. When you create a brand identity, you are on the sure road to successs.
Learn from global brand leaders in all fields. Rank Xerox has become synonymous with the photocopier; if you want to photocopy a document, you just say, ’’ xerox some copies for me’’. Mercedes Benz, Toyota, Ford are powerful auto brands that need no introduction. In their hay days, pop icons like Micheal Jackson, Bob Marley, Elvis Prestley, Elton John were so popular that they all maintained first name recognition like legendary boxers, Mohammed Ali, Mike Tyson, and Rocky Marcaino.
When you mention Trump, they assume you are talking about the controversial President Donald Trump of the United States, whereas there’re other Trump out there, but the U.S President is overbearing image dominates and epitomise that name. Brands are very powerful. There’s a mystique surrounding certain names and instutions or offices that the occupier’s own name is not even known. Take the Pope for instance. Being a Pope is enough to make the occupier of that office an instant global celebrity. People no longer care about the name of the Pope himself. Oxford and Cambridge symbolise the iconic universities in Britain. In London Fleet street is where the newspapers are, Serville Row is the street where the tailors are located. Rolex has become another name for the luxury watch; noboby needs to tell you that. Boeing is an aircraft. What about Coca cola? People simply request for coke when asking for a soft drink, or Pepsi if they prefer its fierce rival.
All of these boils down to telling your own story. Over the years, the successful brands mentioned have promoted those product to the hilt , and lodged their images in our subconscious. You have to learn from this in your quest to re-invent yourself. That is what I am doing here.
10: TAKE CARE OF YOUR HEALTH
Eat a balanced diet. Exercise. Get 8 hours of sleep. You’ve heard of this before, but you’ll need to take care of your health in order to go through this transitional period. And, don’t forget to take care of your emotional and mental well-being as well. Whether it’s mediating or going to counseling, your entire being needs to be in tip-top shape.
Health, they say, is wealth. It is a truism acknowledged worldwide. But not many are aware that what we eat determines our state of health. All the nutrients we need for survival are in the food we eat. That’s why starving people look gaunt and malnourished.
You eat good food in order to survive; you do not survive to eat. All our labours point, first and foremost to the provision of daily bread, which is food on the table, before other considerations like shelter and clothing. Personal care is not devoid of adequate feeding.
Anyone, indeed any nation that succeeds in taking care of food, has triumphed over adversity by and large. All around care, however, involves much more. As we labour and struggle daily to live well, we should also rest when necessary. Even God rested on the seventh day of creation. Nature compels us to sleep daily after a hard day’s work so that we do not break down.
Lack of sleep or poor sleep patterns opens the doors to stress and lowered immunity against diseases. In today’s high-pressured society, millions are at risk of heart disease, high blood pressure, and other stress – induced diseases, because we live on the fast line. You have to be alive first, before you enjoy your fame and fortune. Therefore, take care of yourself.
Socrates said, “know thyself”. That’s the first law. Know your health profile and take good care of yourself. Create a life style that suits you and no one else. Eat a balanced diet, work hard but play hard. You’d have to unwind after a hard day’s work. Visit the gym in the morning, shed some pounds. Excess fat is dangerous so never forget to see your doctor at the due date, don’t take your health for granted those who do, never live to regret it.
If you can afford it, take a holiday, you may not have to go to exotic sites abroad if you don’t have the resources. There’s internal tourism. There’s always somewhere you have never visited in your home country. Go there. Internal tourism is cheap and equally enjoyable.
When you take a break from the hustle and bustle of life, you give your body the chance to mend the scars from wear and tear. To be in shape, you must be disciplined. Eat right, live right; avoid harmful habits like smoking, hard drinking and consumption of dangerous substances. Even, the eagle renews it body once in a year when it goes to a mountain peak to shed its feathers and grow new ones before flying out. Snakes shed their skin often. We humans must go through a process of self-renewal at certain periods in our life time. That’s why I have included health in one of the 20 Ways to re-invented yourself
11. SEEK INSPIRATION
What did you used to be passionate about? What inspires you? We sometimes lose track of that during the hustle and bustle of life. If you can’t remember, recall your childhood. What things were you excited about? Once you’ve found your inspiration, take action. If you’ve always wanted to paint, then start painting.
Inspiration sometimes comes from odd places. Newton reportedly got inspiration to study gravity when he observed a fruit fall from a tree. The culmination of this inspiration was his landmark theory of Gravity or Newton’s Law; a scientific landmark in the subject of physics. During moments of inspiration like this, awesome revelation could be obtained which eventually may serve as turning points in careers.
People thrive on inspiration. I know this, having started my 40 year-career in the entertainment industry, beside being a creative person myself. Without constant flow of inspiration, nothing can be created. Unfortunately many self-destruct when they seek inspiration from stimulants like hard drug or weed.
These substances may get you high, but their harmful effects are terrible. Thousands of otherwise great careers in sport, entertainment and the creative industry in general, have been ruined. We know the pathetic stories of several Hollywood denizens who made good, but ended up being institutionalized before their painful, untimely deaths.
One bad thing about addiction is that it shipwrecks the promising careers of it victim and makes them broke. Never seek inspiration from dangerous substances. Genuine inspiration comes from nature or divine revelation, through the Holy Spirit. This is not being religious! God has created nature to inspire us to do what we need to do.
Just imagine that birds gave us the idea that man could fly a plane. From the fish, we learn to swim and make ships, etc. Recall Newton’s inspiration from the preceding. Albert Einstein said, “Imagination is greater than knowledge”. He should know better because he was a rare genius; the legendary physicist who formulated the landmark Theory of Relativity. This achievemnt is still being celebrated today because of its salutary impacts on science and technology. Moving from success to significance is for me; a new mantra. I sleep and wake up with the thought every single day of the week, and that keeps me going. I gain inspiration to work towards moving Christians from the Prayer Room to and the Board Room, because I believe my brethren need to get empowered in the marketplace.
Otherwise, we won’t be able to evangelize a dying world for Jesus Christ. Seek inspiration the right way
12. SEEK HELP
Susan O’Malley said, “People ask how I got through medical school with a baby. The answer is always the same. With a lot of help. Most of us want to help others but are often reluctant to ask for help.” Many feelings get stirred up — weakness, fear and vulnerability topping the list. But If you don’t ask, the answer will always be no. You need to ask yourself: Is getting nothing done on your own more important than completing a task with help? If not, ask for help.
Many people need help, but fail to seek it for different reasons. Some people fear being turned down, so rather than seek help, they suffer in silence. Many do not look for help because of pride. They have the idea that their self esteem could be in jeopardy if the helper proves unkind. Shakespear said, ‘’ A gift wax poor if the giver proves unkind.’’
Well, noboby has it all. We’ll come short in some ways, where others are more than adequate. For everywhere you have a need, there is always a place where there’s excess. That’s how life is. The balancing act is what help is all about and it is not anyone’s fault that they need help, nature makes it so. It is a fact of life.
It is unlikely you’d go through life without seeking helped or being helped because no man is an Island. We live in an interdependent global village. No nation or individual, is wholly independent. A fully self sufficient nation would require no importation or exportation of goods or services. Such a nation does not exist. Nobody can be so self-sufficient as to meet all their needs entirely, without a need for external imputs
A woman cannot give birth without the help of a medical personnel or local helpers. The imperatives of having a helper is why God ordained the marriage institution in the first place. Some folks say, their help comes from above. That may be true, but God can only help you here on earth through the instumentality of human beings that you have to approach.
You are not in any way devalued because someone helped you. That fellow was also helped by someone. You better ask for help if you need it. To continue to suffer in silence when you need assistance is to abide in folly. I have helped many people in need, and I have also been helped many times along the way. I will continue to seek help from others when I have a need. It is not a sin.
Even the Bible says,’’ Seek and you shall find, ask and it shall be given, knock it shall be opened.’’ When we pray, we are actually asking for God’s help to solve some problems. God knows that, so he placed the Holy Spirit inside the believer to help them in times of need. But the Holy Spirit only helps through human vessels that we have to approach ourselves. Help doesn’t drop like manna. The Holy writ says you should seek to find.
Granted, it hurts when some refuses to help when you are in dire straits. Such action leaves a bad feeling in our hearts. Yet, it is not enough reason to rejecy help outright. If somone decides not to help, go elelsewhere, because it is killing to carry a load that’s too heavy for you.
Moreover, how can you re-invent without a helper? The admonition I can give is to pray before seeking crucial assistance from anyone , including family members and reliable friends, so that they don’t fail you. Only God never disappoints.
Sometimes, you could use wisdom when looking for help. There’s what we call obligatory favour. Approach those you have helped in the past; they’d most likely be more disposed to respond positively, because they know they owe a favour they’ve to pay back. This kind of favour is more easily dispensed if the person approached has a conscience and is able to remember that you once helped at some point. However some people are ungrateful. They easily forget their former helpers or pretend not to remember. Do not be deterred by those probabilities.
13. EXPLORE NEW FRONTIERS
Eat at a new restaurant. Visit a foreign country. Learn a new skill. Getting out of your comfort zone will help you grow as a person, discover new markets, and even lead you to discovering your true calling. This point was made in the preceding. But here, we’re dealing with how to re-invent by exploration of new frontiers.
For those who want to reposition or re-invent, this is the core of it all: explore your universe. You need to explore entirely new horizons and look at new vistas, new possibilities. It brings us back to the point of leaving your comfort zone. This time, that zone is not your family, country or home, it is your existing creative domain. This is when to make a giant leap forward in your career. To explore new frontiers still requires a spirit of adventures, but in a different way. Now you have to take guarded risks. You look carefully before you leap into untested waters.
If you are an employee, you could begin to think about starting your own business. If you are a successful business owner, you may be thinking of expanding into new market abroad. These decision now require strategic thinking, solid business acumen and financial intelligence. When you go abroad, you’re not going for sight-seeing or in search of the proverbial fleece; you are going in search of greener investment pastures, strong partners and foreign capital.
These are game-changing moves that you approach with the caution and tactics of a chess player. Any slip may be disastrous. New expansion of markets, capital are at the core of your agenda as you look to join the big league. New opportunities always abound, but sometimes, it takes discernment to see them. What some people see as problems, may in fact be opportunities. Wastes used to be seen as unwanted rubbish to be disposed of; not anymore. Wastes now serve many purposes. They can be used to generate electricity and recycled as raw materials for various industrial productions. Waste is wealth in disguise.
To explore new opportunities is an exercise that that covers every aspect of life, including leisure. It is good to explore what new restaurants have to offer. Eat out with your partner or spouse if you are married. Eating out, especially at a new restaurant, could be fun. Try it.
One of the new things you should try, is new skills and it can be acquired at any age, as learning is a lifelong process. To cease to learn is to invite atrophy. A new skill properly applied and marketed to the right publics could grow your incomes substantially. A key element of re-invention involves growing your income, especially when your bills begin to expand, perhaps, because your responsibilities are growing fast. Since bills always rise to meet income levels, you have to grow your income faster by diversifying into new arrears of business. In my life, I have taken up additional responsibilities like setting up the foundation which involves giving money to the less privileged in the UK and Nigeria. This posed a great financial challenge. To meet this responsibility, I did the marathon, slept outside, skydived and did other odd stuff just to raise funds for my charitable activities.
What this tells us is that you can explore opportunities to help society within your own district, with the little you have. Even if you do not have a foundation, you can leverage on your contacts, like your Alumni Association, social clubs
14. DEVELOP A DAILY ROUTINE
It is always good to reteat to a quiet corner in your home to meditate daily. This should be done first thing in the morning or last thing before going to bed. This would help you reconnect with your vision and see where you are going off tangent.
In the morning, you may wake up with a new dream; a new hope that may set you on a new course altogether. Early morning meditation helps you to look at your daily agenda and write out your can-do list and decide how your day would go. At this period of the day, your mind is still fresh , so you can take a critical, objective look at things.
Savour silent moments. They are the times God speaks to us through the Holy Spirit. Most people do not hear from God because of distractions. Meditate on the projects on hand. Read the word of God, pray and ask God how to proceed. This is how you develop a close relationship with God. You’d always need divine direction, even for little, mundane things as common as what clothes to wear, which route to take when going to work, etc.
It is good to be quiet for a few hours after you wake up, just to collect your thoughts and relax your mind. This is the period you give entirely to yourself. At other moments, you deal with external issues, some of which do not concern you directly.
Developing the morning routine is quite helpful because you gain a clear focus, as the mind is still fresh and able to evaluate things more clearly. The nerves at this time , are cooler and more relaxed as well. By the time you get to work, tensions begins to build, following from the traffic snarl you encounter on your way to work. Routine office work has its own stress.
Back home at night, after dinner, watching the television and resting, you’d need another round of quiet moments, and again some meditation over the day’s work. Bed time reflections are what you sleep with, and they often get into your subconscious, occasionally becoming good or bad dreams. Therefore, be careful with the thought you take to bed. Of course, there are crucial decisions we have to sleep over and turn over continually as we go to sleep.
Some things we encounter during office hours keep us awake all through the night. Reflections at night will help us evaluate what’s important or unimportant. We then decide what we keep in our thoughts or what to take out altogether. Turn on good music at night to calm you down if you are disturbed and can’t seem to meditate properly. Music has a soothing effect on the emotions.
Books like Brain Tracy’s Golden Hour, Robin Sharma’s 20/20/20 and the Herod’s SAVER have helped me to appreciate the importance of quiet moments.
15. EXPAND YOUR NETWORK
I did by joining Toastmasters international, CIPD and the community. A network is actually a community of like minds. When I realized I needed some training in public speaking, I knew Toastmasters was where to go. The rest is history.
Since we are dealing with re-invention, the influence of people is paramount. Every network has its benefit because they create large, valued contacts that we cannot get as individuals. Anyone who is desirous of upward mobility should join a network.
A network is not necessarily a group of businessmen and women. It could be a Church, Rotary or Lions club; the trade or professional association, Alumni association, etc. Any group of people who are pursuing a common interest constitutes a network. If you have good relational skills, or you are what is popularly called a “good mixer.” you’d easily maximize the advantages of a network.
But here, again, we’re looking at how to re-invent yourself, using an expanded network. It may not be enough to join just one or two groups. You may have to be part of several, effective associations that are relevant to every single area of your interest, at home and abroad.
An international association like Toastmasters and the Rotary International, have the transnational coverage that can Impact you in the way that no local group can. A Whatsapp group or Facebook friends are vital networks to be part of.
It’s not enough to be a local champion. Seek new partnerships and affiliations globally to expand your sphere of influence. Vibrant networks can increase your social capital greatly because the people you know, matter.
If you share membership of a group with the President or a man of influence and power, and you are able to have the direct contact of such a personage, you can leverage on this all- important relationship. Many people join Influential social clubs or trade associations like Chambers of Commerce, just to appropriate the vital contacts in those groups.
You do not join the network just to gain benefits however; you must add value. Try to be an asset, otherwise you might be perceived as a schemer. If you are inactive, you may be seen as a parasite. The point being made is that we do not join the group with sole of aim of gaining a personal advantage without giving back anything.
Most networks like the Red Cross give us the platform to offer valuable service to humanity. Some other organizations give us the rare opportunity to give back to society. Joining the network should come with good motives, regardless of what we stand to gain.
16 DEVELOP SELF BELIEF
Self believe is faith in yourself, without it no one can achieve anything in life, because it can be the motivation to do the needful. The craving, the thirst and hunger to excel, comes from self-belief. We may even call it the foundation of faith because if you don’t believe in yourself, how can you believe in the GOD you can’t even see. How can you believe in someone else? Absolutely impossible.
If you don’t believe in yourself, it is doubtful if you can do anything of value. Self-belief is faith writ large. You need it to continue to strive even when it seems that you have failed. Anyone with strong self – belief can be counted upon to follow through to the end when others fall by the way side.
The largest dose of any single ingredient required for success in any field is self – belief. It is what drives you, what gets you going every day. You believe, then you move on to achieve your goal, no matter how bad the portends may look. All the wisdom literature across the ages teach that self – belief is the sine qua non for any dimension of success in all endeavors. The history of achievers prove this without reasonable doubt; my own life testifies to that. I thrive because of self – belief, faith in me and my GOD. They are actually coterminous. If I should list just one thing you’d ever need to re-invent yourself, it is self–belief. It is where everything begins and ends. Self – belief gives me the confidence that what I teach is a product of what makes me succeed.
There’s an element of faith that GOD has implanted into the human spirit that gives him the confidence to believe in himself. That’s the source of self – belief. A man who has self – belief cannot be easily intimidated or discouraged by anyone. Champions thrive on self – belief. They know and believe that set- backs are temporary and that even if they lose, they can still stage a come-back and win a spectacular victory.
One quality you need to overcome humiliation, pain, fear or defeat is self – belief. It would always serve you well in tight situations. I have faced terrible circumstances in the past, but faith in myself saw me through; no matter how long success was in coming, if you believe in yourself, you’d keep faith that you would make it. The re-invention of self is a function of this self – belief we’re discussing here. It is absolutely essential that you get it into your spirit that nobody instills self – belief into you, it’s a tall order to achieve for any mentor. You must have to believe in you.
You are the one to develop your own self to belief that you can do all things. The Apostle Paul in the Bible declared, “I can do all things by Christ who strengthens me”. Yes, a supernatural power is required for you to be able to talk with such confidence. Paul said his source is Christ.
That’s my source as well, but you have to develop your self – belief before you can apprehend the supernatural power to do all things.
17. LEVERAGE ON SOCIAL MEDIA
The internet has turned the world into a global village. It has spurned different platforms that have led to a convergence of cultures, life styles, beliefs, religions, political and socio-economic systems. Every thing of substance is captured by the internet’s search engines, online portals, satellite television and the social media-Facebook, instagram, tweeter, whatsapp, etc.
We’re now living in the WWW universe. You cannot afford to be left out. Hate it or love it, the social media has come to stay despite the obvious abuse to which it is subjected to; no other device can beat its worldwide reach. Citizens journalism as practiced on the social media, gives you news on your phone as it unfolds. Something that happens in a remote location can be seen live on your phone in a matter of seconds.
The awesome power of the social media can be seen in its influences on the people, even though billions are yet to be connected. Any serious-minded person should find a way to leverage on the social media. Use it to advance whatever you may stand for. Be it your business, your philosophy, product, services; infact, anything of interest to you and humanity.
The best leverage you can have is to appropriate the all-pervading influence of this massive network to reach as many people as possible. You can meet more people or connect with more people than you can ever hope to meet in life. If you have something unique or special to display, use the social media to announce it. The good thing about this superb medium is that it is an all comers’ affair. Everyone can access social media-all it takes is an Android phone. You can tell your story on the social and you’d be guaranteed an instant audience.
The new you, the re-invented person you have become can emerge as a celebrity on the social media. You don’t have to struggle to be accepted. If you tell your story well, thousands out there are waiting to celebrate you. Leverage on the social media to relaunch yourself and make an impact.
Imagine when the whole world eventually gets connected. We’re talking about a projected population of ten billion in a few years’ time. That’s a market! The world has never seen this level of opportunities before. Re-invent yourself and get ready to be a global superstar when you
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