As A Man Thinketh
Assessment By Ayoade, Anthony Ayodeji (Nigeria)
1. What is the main idea that the author is trying to convey in the book?
The main idea is that the author is trying to convey is power of thoughts. That is, man is only limited by his ability to think nightly.
2. What were the seven ideas which were personally most important to you and why? List these seven ideas followed by an explanation after each one as to why it was important to you. Use personal example from your own life.
POWER OF MEDITATION (THOUGHT)
We become who we are by virtue of the kind of thoughts we entertain in our minds that is, we are “ Captains of our ships”, and “Master of our destinies”. We are what we think. What we think in our inner world determines what kind of thing people see in our outer world. If we can change our thinking, we can change our world.
We can adapt ourselves to the world or adapt the world to ourselves depending on what we think in our inner world. Circumstance or situation around us or our outer world is not as important as what we think or have or entertain in our inner world.
Man’s character is the complete sum of all his thoughts. That is, what a man does is as a result of what he had been thinking. A person who did something good has been thinking about good things. A person who committed a crime did not do it suddenly; he had been harboring bad thoughts in his mind. Personally, I use the power of meditation to adapt the bad happenings around me to myself and to align my body and soul.
POWER OF SELF CONTROL
This book reveals that when thoughts are sown in the mind, it takes nurturing to make it grow. Nurturing takes time and efforts to carry out and anything that takes process, requires control.
Weeds, that is, bad thoughts, grow without efforts and they are enemies of good thoughts. The weeds need continuous weeding, however if one endure in purity of thought, Joy follows him as his own shadow-sure”
The security of a house is as strong as the gateman who watches over it. Each of us is the gateman of his own house, which is our mind. We must be on guard, tirelessly all the time to watch the enemy that wants to steal our birthright: Peace, Joy, and other blessings.
If we sleep or fail to have as self-control and allow bad thoughts to dominate our mind, the result will not be good. However, if we endure in the fight, our enemy will get tired on the long run and we’ll be able to enjoy the fruit of our labour.
Evil thoughts come to my mind often and this book had opened my eyes to see a key weapon in form of self-control in overcoming unwanted thoughts. James Allen revealed that a man may rise to high success in the world, and gain descending into failure if he lacks self-control. “Only the wise man, only he whose thought are controlled and purified makes the wind and the storm of the world obey him”, according to James Allen.
POWER OF KNOWLEDGE/EXPERIENCE
Knowledge sets man free. I personally love to hear things that will set me free. A man is not free if he is still in bondage mentally. The content if his book has provided powerful information that we need to become real man. “Man is made or unmade by himself ”- the knowledge he possesses will make this difference.
For example, it is power of knowledge that reveals to man that his mind is a mine field where he can dig for gold and diamonds. According o James Allen, “Man can find every truth connected with his being, if he will dig deep into the mine of his soul.”
Similarly, I’ve been able to comprehend the fact that each of my experience is to know my strengths and weaknesses to become wiser and powerful. However, I need to acquire more knowledge and experience with patience.
POWER OF PRINCIPLES
This book makes its readers to understand the power of principles or cause and effect. That is, nothing can be done is secret, that won’t come out in the open. Life is about cause and effect – a particular cause leads to a particular result. I can’t continue to do a good thing and get a bad result. The universe does not cheat. Nature is just and perfect. If this is so, it renews my resolve to do that which is good all the time.
I now know that conscious or unconscious actions lead to the same result. Therefore, it is important to become conscious because “Ignorance is no excuse”. Three powerful examples were given by the author, they are:
A man who is poorly paid but remains lazy on the ground if poor pay will remain poor or poorer.
A rich man who has bad health due to his poor eating habits but refused to sacrifice his gluttonous desires will remain in bad health.
An employer of labour who is dishonest to his workers will soon have dishonest workers who may ruin him.
The book teaches us that everybody is the author of his condition. This can be seen in the analogy of a man who is seen by everybody as an honest person but thinks within himself that he can never prosper. Principles, which are inviolable, will make his thoughts become realities. People may be wondering why an honest man should be poor but one virtue is seen outwardly is not enough to be used to judge a man’s condition.
POWER OF RESPONSIBILITY
This book teaches that a man only begins to be a man when he ceases to accuse others as the cause of his condition. He builds himself up in strong and noble thoughts when he stops kicking against circumstances. When we begin to use them as opportunities for progress and as a means of discovering the hidden power and possibilities within himself.
I am being to understand that when I change my thinking about things and other people, things will also change towards me. Similarly, can only change my weaknesses end situations by myself, never by another.
POWER OF PURPOSE
Another idea that I was able to pick from the book is the importance of purpose, that is powerful thoughts lead to purposeful life and life without purpose is prone to being driven by negative emotions of fears, worries, self – pitying and troubles. Purposeless life leads to failure or weakness, which has no place in a powerful universe.
Purposeful life, stated by James Allen is a life that has a mission or goals to accomplish. Such a life creates thoughts, which resolve round the purpose which keep him focused. This concentration of thoughts leads to self-control. In a situation where the purpose is not accomplished, it becomes a learning process because certain weakness in such a life would have been identified and turned them to strengths. Similarly, the efforts made to develop the strengths will make a person become stronger.
POWER OF VISION
The book talks about the relevance of what we think in forming our vision. No one can form a vision and realize it without thinking about it in his heart. What we think is what is formed as pictures in our minds. One has to think deeply in order to see beyond the obvious things.
I have in our mindful of what I think to ensure that it is with what I want to become in future.
3. How will these ideas help you in the practical way, both in your daily personal life and in helping you to create a better world? If so, how.
These ideas are helping me in my personal development pursuit. Some of them have made realise my mission and how to keep working on them.
4. Quotes: Are there any statements which the author made that particularly got your attention? If so, please quote them and comment as to why they were important to you.
“Self -control is strength. Right thought is mastery. Calmness is power, say Unto your heart “Peace Be still!”.
This quotation is important to me in the sense that it teaches me how to control my emotions. That is, I can actually talk to my inner self.
“You cannot travel within and stand still without”
This quotation gives encouragement to me that the more I develop my inner self, the more I’ll achieve outwardly. What I do in my inner self determines what I do outside.
“A strong man cannot help a weaker unless that weaker is willing to be helped”
It has always agitated my mind to know why those who don’t know are unwilling to learn when they are helped. This quotation provides answer to this observation. That is, people don’t have the self-will to grow despite the opportunities around them.
“The more tranquil a man becomes, the greater is his success, his influence, his power for good”
One of the emotional goals that I have set for myself is to conquer anger and other related negative emotions. I can feel the peace associated with this decision although I’ve not had a 100% success in the achievement of the goal. However, the above quotation has thrown more light on the need for me to be relentless in achieving this emotional goal. I feel inner joy when I am able to control situations that had been throwing me off balance in the past. I can also relate very well with the words of James Allen that, “Calmness is better than fine gold”.
Jonathan Livingston Seagull
Assessment By Ayoade, Anthony Ayodeji (Nigeria)
1. What is the main idea that the author is trying to convey in the book?
The main idea that the author is trying to get across in the book is self-discovery. That is, each of us has the ability to discover, develop and deploy your potentials.
2. What were the seven ideas which were personally important to you and why? List these seven ideas followed by an explanation after each one as to why it was important to you. Use personal examples from own life.
The first idea which is important is that I need to be alone to develop myself privately before coming out to shine publicly. This is quite relevant to me because I spend many hours reading books and writing as well. All these self-development efforts are often misinterpreted by people who don’t know what I do in my isolation periods. I believe that isolation leads to elevation. Those who cannot discern often think that my isolation amounts to abdication of my responsibilities. I have been able to carry on because the most important thing in my life has been identified. That is, my vision and mission in life.
The second idea that is important to me is that many old beliefs are limiting beliefs, which do not encourage habits of self-improvement and innovation.
If I have believed that one needs a lot of money to start doing something that will make positive impacts in people’s lives, I would not have started anything. The common belief is that one must satisfy oneself before others. If I had relied on this belief, I would not have been able to publish “GEMSTONE MAGAZINE” which I give freely to my audience during seminars. If one lives according to other people’s rules, one will never perform better than them. Therefore, it is better to think out of the box. I have learnt how to live according to other people’s rules, ideas, beliefs and values. What people believe is not as important as what you believe.
The third idea is to look beyond doing things that makes you popular if you are interested in making or effecting changes. When I spend money on projects relating to my mission in life, many people don’t see the wisdom in that, which makes my decision unpopular.
The fourth idea is that one can only discover that nothing is impossible if one persists. Persistence is an essential habit for anyone who aspires for success. Consistency of action and performance is essential to become perfect in any endeavor. It is summarized in that one word – persistence. This is what separate winners from losers- doing what other are not doing in order to get what have eluded them all the while.
I have personally discovered that there is nothing anyone can achieve without persistence. There have been occasion when I felt like giving up on my mission. At these moments of financial and emotional challenges, the thoughts came to me that people don’t worth the sacrifice. I try to overcome this temptation when I remembered this words by Peter McWilliams, “Be willing to be uncomfortable, Be comfortable being uncomfortable, it may get tough, but it’s a small price to pay for living a dream.’’
The fifth idea is that one must learn to listen to one’s inner – self more than others. What goes on outside is not as important as what goes on inside. Personally, in pursuing my mission, I’ve encountered disappointments from people who are not honest. However, the solution is continuous development of my inner eyes. Of course, this requires self-discipline and self-motivation.
The sixth idea is that no one and nothing else can discourage you from doing what lies in your heart. The heart (subconscious mind) is more powerful than the mind (conscious mind). Positive emotions that one allows to lie in one’s heart create passion that overcomes negative emotions that come from the conscious mind. Every other thing pales to insignificance once I create a passion to read books. Trivial things that could have stolen my time are taken care of.
Things are definitely not achieved on a platter of gold but I’ve seen failure and mistakes as parts of learning. Whoever doesn’t have to fail can’t set a record. The fact that you’ve seen failure does not mean you are a failure. I’ve not grown up as a boy in the best of environment where people don’t have encouraging words for one another. The first day I stated schooling; one of our neighbors derided me and my sister as being unrealistic. I allowed this to create a passion in me to excel.
The seventh idea is that any decision not to act in order not to face challenges or failure can’t lead to progress.
Personally, I am an introvert. Therefore, my decision to be a public speaker seems not to be in agreement with my nature. However, I believe what Susan Jeffers says that, “feel the fear and do it anyway!’’ When I did my first public speaking, it only got easier afterwards, not more difficult. If we don’t start something, we’ll never know how good we are in that thing. I discovered that until I started, I never yearnd to become good in public speaking. Now I know that I don’t need to only become good but also search for excellence that will make me break limits.
3. How will these ideas help you in a practical way, both in your daily personal life and in helping you to create a better world? If so, how?
(a) These ideas are already helping me when I started a magazine publication called GEMSTONE. I intend to publish a book titled, “Habits of Exemplary People” very soon which will be distributed to student free of charge, just like the magazine. I intend to establish a leadership school in future to cater for the lack of leadership skills in the present educational curriculum.
What a success minded person sees as an act of responsibility may be seen otherwise by ordinary minds. Therefore, don’t expect people to roll stones away from your path on your way to achievement. You must expect people, even those who are close to you to throw even more stones along your path. When you stand at a higher level, don’t expect people who are standing at lower levels to see things the same way with you. Although, it is painful when others fail to see what you are seeing. There are challenges that we must be ready to face but they present opportunities to grow. One even grows faster when it is discovered that no one is there for one.
4. Quotes: Are there any statements which the author made that practically got your attention? If so, please quote them and comment as to why they were important to you.
“Who is more responsible than a gull who finds and follows a meaning, a higher purpose for life?”
It is an irony of fate in real life that those who are irresponsible (the constitute the majority) see those who are responsible as irresponsible. The reason for this problem as offered by this book is that majority of people have wrong beliefs.
“Boredom and fear and anger are the reasons that a gull’s life is so short.”
These are the negative emotions that constitute another weed apart from limiting beliefs, which conspire together to hinder man from living a fulfilled life.
“One school is finished, and the time has come for another to begin”
The saying goes that, “when the student is ready, the teacher will appear.” The above statement from the book gives credence to this fact. We keep learning everyday and when we stop learning we’ll stop growing. What we learn today determines where we shall be tomorrow. If any one wants to be in a better place tomorrow, he must start preparing for it by learning what he needs to learn today. This compliments another statement in the book that, “We choose our next world through what we learn in this one.”
“Instead of being enfeebled by age, the Elder had been empowered by it.”
There are many old people who are not empowered by age due to ignorance. This statement is an eye opener for one to keep learning in order to have wisdom. Age does not automatically confer wisdom.
“Heaven is not a place, and it is not a time. Heaven is being perfect” and “any number is a limit, and perfection doesn’t have limits.”
As a Christian, my eye of understanding is being opened to see that perfection is a thing of the mind. I can only be a perfect as my thinking permits me. As I think in my mind, so I shall be. If I think heaven is here in my mind it is so. Therefore, perfection is inside every human. It only awaits acknowledgement. The above quotation teaches me that I need not think that heaven is somewhere, it is here inside. And I must start living as if I am already there. Though only the spiritual conscious ones can understand it.
“To fly fast as thought, to anywhere that is, you must begin by knowing that you have already arrived.”
This quotation is emphasizing the power of thinking. That is, what you think is what you are and what you become. Thoughts create realities and perception is stronger than realities.
“You didn’t need faith to fly, you needed to understand flying.”
We don’t have to leave for others what we must do by ourselves. This quotation enlightens me to see that faith can’t stand alone where action is needed.
“It always works, when you know what you are doing.”
This quotation made me remember the power of goal setting. If a person does not know where he is going, he can’t get there. The day I know where I am going, I can’t afford to stop working towards it.
“Keep working on love.”
The importance of the four-letter word ‘LOVE` is emphasized in this quotation for me to appreciate. This means a lot to me because I realized it as the most powerful emotion which is the mother of all other positive emotions.
“The gull sees farthest who flies highest.”
This quotation is a word of encouragement to me in that, if I want to see farther than others, I must be ready to fly higher than them.
“If our friendship depends on things like space and time, then when we finally overcome spaces and time, we’ve destroyed our own brotherhood!”
Friendship is in the heart, in our thinking. If not, when there is physical separation, there won’t be any friendship again. This is actually revelation knowledge to me.
“Break the chains of your thoughts, and you break the chains of your body” and “We are free to go where we wish and to be what we are.”
The power of the mind is being revealed to me in a new language, which makes me understand the power of imagination more. That is, I can see what I want to see in my mind at anytime without any barrier. I can be at anywhere at anytime without anything to hold me back.
“The only true law is that which leads to freedom. There is no other.”
People have been living below their potential due to their bondage of mind. A person who is free bodily but is not free in the mind is in bondage. I have an organization called Basic Freedom Network, which is meant to provide resources that can make people become free. The fundamental resource is information or knowledge. Therefore, true law can be identified by the limitation if is able to remove.
“The hardest thing in the world is to convince a bird that is free, and that he can prove it for himself if he’d just spend a little time practicing.”
This quotation attracts my attention because it is absolutely true for human being. They find it difficult to accept the truth that will set them free. They find it difficult to do the good things that will benefit them and find it easier to do the things that set them back. I encounter this anomaly on a daily basis among people.
5. Is there anything in the book that you do not understand or are unclear about, or are there ideas which you disagree with and, if so, why?
No
6. Did the book contain exercises for the reader to complete? If so, did you complete all of the exercises and did you find them helpful?
No exercises
7. Was there anything you read in the book that you would like to comment on that was not covered in the previous questions? If so, please comment.
A man’s life becomes short when it is filled with boredom and fear. A life that is lived purposefully is a fulfilled and fine one.
In life, when one school is finished, another one begins. Until a particular lesson is learnt, it keeps repeating itself.
What we learn today, determines our promotion tomorrow
Until you are aware of goals to be accomplished you can’t reach them. For example, when you see excellence as a goal, you’ll begin to work towards it, otherwise, you’ll remain where you are.
Age is supposed to empower us rather than make as weak.
Perfection is being there. Any number is a limit, and perfection doesn’t limit.
Those who seem perfection (excellence) for any sake are going nowhere.
You are not limited by your physical body or any physical thing including space and time for that matter, avoid putting yourself in the limitation of space and time, overcome this by thinking about HERE and NOW. Everlasting things don’t depend on SPACE and TIME. You are as free as your thoughts can carry you. This is self-discovery and the beginning of the road to self-fulfillment.
Faith without knowing what to do and doing it is meaningless and fruitless. Things always work when you know what you are doing.
Until you’ve learnt to fly the past (guilt) and the future (fear) you’ll not be ready to begin flying up and knowing the meaning of kindness and of love. Love is demonstrated by giving the truth one has known to those who ask for it.
One can only help those who are ready or high enough to see what they are being told. A child must willingly open her arms before she can be carried up.
Forgive those who fail to see things that you see because one day they’ll see what you see. Don’t stop helping them to understand with kindness and love.
When we break the chain of ignorance, we shall break the limitations of the law and belief. The only true law is that which leads to freedom, there is no other. Everybody has the right to be free because it is the very nature of our being, therefore, all limitations (LAW, SPACE, TIME) must be aside.
No one is created better than the other, the only difference is self-discovery or understanding who you are.
The hardest thing n the world is to convince a human that he is free and that he can prove it for himself if he’d just spend a little time practicing.
Love is seeing the good in everyone and helping them to see it in themselves.
What you need to find out is what you already know but which you can’t see with your limited eyes. When you start seeing what you believe, you’ll stop believing what you see and you’ll start looking with understanding and new consciousness.
Everybody is an image of greatness, an unlimited idea of freedom and one is only limited by one’s own thought.
When you discover there is much more to living and a reason to life, you’ll have the passion to lift yourself out of ignorance. You’ll find yourself as creature of excellence, intelligence and skill. You’ll never stop doing things that’ll make you free.
Keys to Success
Assessment by Ayoade, Anthony Ayodeji (Nigeria)
1. What is the main idea that the author is trying to convey in the book?
The main idea is the revelation of 17 identified principles that can open doors of success to every one.
2. What were the seven ideas which were personally most important to you and why? List these seven ideas followed by an explanation after each one as to why it is important to you. Use personal examples from your own life.
i. The first idea is that there is a starting point for all worthwhile achievements. The beginning is the identification of one’s purpose – developing a Personal Mission Statement, that is, a high, desirable, outstanding goal that will be kept ever in the front burner.
I formed my Personal Mission statement over four years ago and it gave me my definiteness of purpose. Ever since that day, a burning desire had been created in me to pursue my goals.
ii. The second idea is the importance of a master mind alliance in attaining a specific objective.
Mastermind alliance can be created with oneself, one’s co-worker and so on. I discovered that this concept is quite useful in self development, work and family environment. This consciousness had opened my eyes to see how I can make effective use of this knowledge.
iii. The third idea is that development of an attractive personality leads to achievement of purpose. A person who lacks self worth will not have self esteem and confidence. There are actually things that one can do to enhance one’s image, it must be noted that a positive self – image is firstly created in the mind before it can be seen outwardly. Character formed in the inner world creates confidence in the outer world. Apart from appearing well, I aspire more importantly to develop sound character which is giving me more confidence to face life stronger and better.
iv. The fourth idea is that faith helps in removing limitations from the mind just as a simple light dispels darkness. An open mind sees beyond limitations, so it is important for one to have faith in Infinite Intelligence. As a practicing Christian, my growing faith in God makes me see myself in a new light that creates more confidence in me to face all odds.
v. The fifth idea is that the quantity and quality of service we render with a Positive Mental Attitude determine the compensation we receive from the universe. This idea motivates me to do more in rendering service despite the challenges. It is revealed that I have to give value in order to receive value. For example, if I want to receive a miracle from God, I only need to give something valuable to Him – a praise, thanksgiving, service and so on. The sixth idea is that awareness of the reason to act is the tonic needed to become responsible.
This idea gives me the consciousness that my failure to act on anything that will make me become responsible is ignorance of purpose. To overcome this, I have to look for things that will motivate me.
vii. The seventh idea is that the solutions to my problem lies in helping someone else solve his or her problem. Solving another person’s problem gives me the insight to solve my own problem.
3. How will these ideas help you in a practical way, both in your daily personal life and in helping you to create a better world? If so, how?
From experience and the knowledge I’ve acquired now, it is clear that one of the things that everyone should have is a Personal Mission Statement. I have to assist people to form PMS which is necessary to guide them in ordaining their destinies. The society will be better for it if everyone has a written down statement to guide him or her.
The fact that I can form a master- mind with myself and with others indicates that greater things can be achieved when willing minds come together. I’ve personally discovered that it is difficult to get willing minds together due to ego problem, so I strive to form a mastermind between my conscious mind, subconscious mind, and the universal mind. As time goes on the universe will provide willing mind that will assist me in accomplishing further the mission of the Basic Freedom Network –a master mind group which I formed.
Good personality is essential towards attainment of success in life, be it business, family and other relationships. Some factors lead to good personality: proper self-identity, good character, sense of humour, proper dress, enthusiasm or passion. Proper self identity creates self-worth, self-esteem and self-confidence to hold on to your own in the world. Knowing that I’m having natural gifts: body, mind, heart and conscience, gives me the confidence that no one is better than me and I’m not better than anyone. All of us have similar natural gifts, but the difference is how each of us develops them. Man and woman, rich and poor, black and white who look down on one another are simply ignorant of their identities. I aspire for a good conscience to help me in discerning good from bad thereby promoting good character which endears me to people. Knowing that what I do is right and good puts me on better terms with my conscience and gives me the self-confidence which I need to have a good personality.
A good heart is needed to have good personality, this is a heart that is controlled by positive emotions of which love is the strongest. For the world to be better, every one of us has to preach love.
Faith banishes all forms of hindrance that can hinder the subconscious mind from being effective. I have to develop my faith only in GOD, through prayer, gratitude and knowledge. As a preacher of the word of GOD, I now understand the reason why my thanksgiving should be more than my request from GOD. We’ll be better off spiritually when we realize that the universal mind relates easily with a subconscious mind that is thankful for things not yet received and bring faster result to it than a heart that is only full of requests.
People want immediate expectation for any service that they render. I’ve been disappointed on many occasions by people who fail to endure in a worthwhile service we engaged in.
We’ll produce better service and create a better world once we realize that what we do is never lost in the universe. There is always a reward for everything you do sooner or later. One of the laws of the universe that says, “What a man sows, he shall reap” is sacrosanct.
To have a better world, I have to keep talking to people, pay them attention, educate and give them hope as much as possible.
Responsibility is in fact, self-motivation, I have to motivate my self to induce action and determine choice in an attempt to produce specific result. Each of us needs to create personal initiative or identify things that will make us act to produce positive results. When everybody becomes responsible, God’s abilities will produce great possibilities in the world. I have resolved to leave the circle of concern for the circle of influence by empowering people with information that can motivate and inspire them.
The task before me is to train my eyes to always see the seed of equivalent benefit in every disappointment I face. I need to make people see this fact as well for all of us to live a happier and fulfilled life; otherwise, we’ll all get drifted from our goals by the challenges that these situations bring.
4. Quotes: Are there brief quotes from the book which really got your attention? If so, please list and comment on them.
“One single idea may have greater weight than the labour of all the men, animals and engines for a century.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson.
Ideas really rule the world. All inventions today are based on one man’s ideas. Therefore, ideas are powerful because they can positively change lives and societies.
“There is no scarcity of opportunity. There is only a shortage of imagination.”
Imagination makes one see opportunities. The more man is able to fire his imagination; to that extent he will see opportunities around himself.
“The cheapest and most profitable quality in the world is courtesy”
There are people who have earned promotion from their simple acts of courtesy or respect for others. It doesn’t really cost anything to be respectful other than burying one’s pride.
“At sunrise, every soul is born again” – Walter Malone
All of us have the chance to put defeat behind us everyday we wake up and look forward to a brand new day and opportunities. We must learn to accept defeat as an inspiration to try again with renewed confidence and determination. Then, attaining success will only be a matter of time.
“Nothing will happen in your life that you do not inspire by your own initiative”
We have our destinies in our own hands. We can only rise and fall according to our own decision to act or not. Nothing will move if we refuse to move it. Learn to force yourself at first to do things without being told to do them.
“Do unto other as you would have others do unto you.”
Love is the greatest attractive value which can be created and maintained by living according to the above quote.
“Prayer is your greatest power”
Our subconscious mind is powerful but the universal mind is much more powerful. Prayer, apart from meditation is the link between us and the universe which makes us have access to unknown mysteries and secrets. Prayer can turn darkness to light and change any situation.
“The emotions are not always immediately subject to reason but they are always immediately subject to action.”
Everyone can act but not everyone can reason, the way each of us handle emotions depend on our maturity, a matured person subjects his emotions to reason while an immature person subjects his feelings to action without reasoning.
“Truth will be truth regardless of a closed mind, ignorance or refusal to believe.”
Don’t be necessarily influenced by someone’s opinion. Opinions are not facts, unlike truth which can never change despite being ignored. Learn to separate facts from opinions by looking for authentic references.
“Keep your mind on the thing you want and off the things you don’t want”
The mind does not sleep, that is, the subconscious mind so, it is important to get one’s thoughts focused on positive things. It is a fact that any man becomes what the thinks. We control the mind by controlling the quality of thoughts it entertains and of course, this determines the quality of our lives.
‘That which you share will multiply: that which you withhold will diminish “
As a matter of fact, what we give lives and what we receive dies. In this age, man is the greatest factor of production not money, or any other resource. Any resource that one has which is shared with people in form of service will produce results according to the law of sowing and reaping. A seed that is sowed in the right soil gets multiplied but a seed that is withheld eventually disappears.
“The worst thing that happens to you may be the best thing that can happen to you if you don’t let it get the best of you”
Failure is an event which can be prevented in future, but looking at the so – called failure shows that it usually has one or two things to teach us, in fact our greatest mistake or failure gives us our greatest lesson. The worst event that happened to you will get the best of you if you see it as the end of life.
“What can be conceived can be created – with PMA”
A Positive Mental Attitude is the key that opens doors of possibilities and that is why the mind is our greatest asset. The mind can be used to imagine anything you want, if you desire with passion, you’ll get it as long as you put up a positive mental attitude.
“You don’t always get what you expect unless you inspect – with PMA”.
The value we attach to our time, money, or other resources depends on our attitude or the sum of our thoughts and beliefs. We inspect what is to be done by thinking over it and our decision depends on the degree to which we have made the principles of personal achievement a part of our lives. If we do not know what we need, we will be inspecting the wrong things and it will be unreasonable to expect the best result.
5. Is there anything in the book that you do not understand or are unclear about, or are there ideas which you disagree with and if so, why?
There is nothing in the book that I do not understand and no idea I disagree with.
6. Did the book contain exercises for the reader to complete? If so, did you complete all of the exercise and did you find them helpful
The book contains exercises for the reader to complete which I endeavored to complete. The exercises were helpful in understanding the content of the book.
7. Was there anything you read in the book that you would like to comment on that was not covered in the precious question? If so please comment.
The importance of passion in improving emotional intelligence is noteworthy. The heart is the seat of positive and negative emotions; a person becomes passionate by deliberately cultivating positive emotions to overlay negative emotions.
Self – discipline is another essential principle of personal achievement. It is needed store up power in the mind to develop control over self. We need to learn how to release the power in precise quantities and in specific directions to achieve our purpose.
Emotions are natural to man in much the same way that a river flows. The power of a river can be dammed up and released under control to become productive; it can become destructive if it is not controlled. Negative emotions can be controlled by self – discipline to remove their harmful effects and make them serve constructive purposes.
There had been occasions in my life when people’s reactions generated anger and fear in me, but I decided to use them to inspire intense positive action to actualize my dream.
Self – discipline is needed to give the conscious mind the ability to produce the will needed to master negativities, otherwise, you’ll have an over inflated ego that keeps your back to the ground. We need the self – discipline to feed the conscious mind with positive information by reading good stuff and seeing positive images consistently.
Accurate thinking is another essential factor of personal achievement. We must draw a line between inductive reasoning and deductive reasoning. Whereas the former are thoughts based on the assumption of unknown facts or opinion, the latter are thoughts backed by references and known facts or truth. We should neither attempt to impose our opinion on others nor imbibe other people’s opinion without knowing the facts behind it.
The statement below in the book “Napoleon Hill’s keys to success” is quite illustrative.
“Most people embrace a religion, ally themselves politically, and even select the car they drive not because they have given thought to the subject but because of the influences of those nearest them: friends, relatives, and acquaintances.
“As an accurate thinker you will accept no political, religious, or other type of thought, regardless of its source, unless and until you have carefully analyzed it. Then, you will accept it or reject it of your own free will and its value to you will be much greater.”
For personal achievement, you have to put all your eggs in one basket and learn to concentrate your attention on protecting that basket and getting it to the market.
Focus or ability to control your attention is the higher from of self – discipline. The person who controls his or her own mind may control everything else. Controlling your attention is the act of coordinating and directing the combined power of all the faculties of the mind to a given end and only where it is needed.
The mind reacts continuously to any influence it is given, since it never remains inactive, even during sleep. Therefore, keeping your mind on the things you want is helpful.
It is equally noteworthy that no one has ever made headway in life without the cooperation of others or team – work. This is a willing cooperation among different kinds of people who want to add value to one another; it is different from the mastermind alliance where the small group of people shares the same vision and mission with passion. Someone said, “Team work makes a dream work”
8. Please rate the following questions on a scale from 1 to 10. Ten is good and one is poor
A. How interesting was it to read? 10
B. How helpful were the contents? 10
C. How easy was it to understand? 10
D. Would you recommend it to other? 10
E. What is the overall rating you would give it? 10
PsychoCybernetics
Assessment by Ayoade, Anthony Ayodeji (Nigeria)
1. What is the main idea that the author is trying to convey in the book?
The main idea that the author is trying to convey in the book is that our performance in real life is tied to our self – image.
Self – image can become poor due to past ugly experiences which had created emotional wounds inside us. The strategies to heal those wounds are laid out in the book. Until we get over these wounds, we’ll continue to be a ‘walking wounded’ who will never achieve personal or professional success.
2. What were the seven ideas which were personally most important to you and why? List these seven ideas followed by an explanation after each one as to why it was important to you. Use personal examples from your own life.
The first idea is that without knowing the things I need to change in my life, I can’t become free. The things I need to change are the wrong images of my personality which I have been holding different from my real self. I need to separate my unique and creative self from the wrong imaginary image that I had created.
I have had a wrong interpretation of past and present events and once I am able to clear them from my memory, I will be able to create the confidence to face the challenges before me.
The need to free my personality from my emotional wounds of the past can’t be over – emphasized.
The second idea is that each of us has the power to build our self – esteem. We react to what we see, hear, and feel according to how we interpreted them. How we interpreted our experience in life affects our self – esteem. Majority of us react to criticism and challenges from people in such a way that it affects our self – esteem. This is the path we have made our subconscious mind to follow since our childhood days but I am now learning to create a new path for my own horse as a good rider.
I used to believe what people say about me than what I believe about myself and this reflects in my reactions or behaviour. To build my self – esteem now, I strive to control my aggressive behavior and other wrong attitudes by unlearning my old belief that “I have to react to every thing that people say or do to me”
The third idea is that we need to develop self – reliance to enhance our self- image. We need to make a decision to become the person to give positive emotion and not the receiver. The reason why we get emotionally hurt is that we ask what people don’t have from them. How can a person who does not have self – love show love? This is an unreasonable and impossible demand. In this wise, we need to develop self – reliance by expecting less from people and instead give more to them.
Now, I strive not to expect everybody to love me or approve of me. Only a very few number of people are conscious of the best and highest in them, so I should not expect them to love, accept and understand me all the time.
The fourth idea is that we have the ability to be in the right mood always. Every human being has two worlds, the inner world and the outer world. We can run into our inner world and leave the outer world immediately we notice any offensive thing in the latter. Instead of allowing the offensive actions, remarks or nuisance in the outer world to make me another nuisance, I have to run into my inner world. There, I visualize the kind of mood I want with a relaxed mind to reprogram me.
The fifth idea is that man is basically a spirit being who can develop his spiritual nature to overcome his ego. Hurtful feelings run wild when your ego and another person’s ego clashes but if you decide to express your spiritual nature, any negative thing that anyone says or does to you is seen clearly as a product of his or her ego and it will hardly border you. For me, I attend church services frequently and do other spiritual works for a break from the cares and concerns of life.
The sixth idea is that physical and emotional healing can be enhanced by giving of oneself to people.
Giving is an act of service and a show of love, which evokes the most powerful feeling in the universe. God, the creator of the universe is love and he shows it by giving everything we need to us. At a personal level, I am grateful to one of my mentors who created in me the awareness to get involved in giving back to the universe through our organization – The Basic Freedom Network.
This is in line with my (Personal Mission Statement) mission to help people have access to empowering information that can set their potentials free. I find time to give to orphanages and motherless babies homes.
The seventh idea is that the habit of meditation enhances relaxation and visualization. Creative imagination of any image one desires occurs when one is between the state of being sleepful and wakeful. The subconscious mind can be used to obtain anything that we desire in the universe. Relationships can be improved, negative habits can be changed and negative emotions can be handled by using the subconscious mind to creatively imagine our desires. I devote 15 minutes each day to reprogram my mind through meditation. I relax by using the “Zen Breathing” method and affirmative words are repeated for my subconscious mind to absorb during the process. This helps me to enjoy inner joy and peace.
3. How will these ideas or lessons help you in a practical way, both in your daily personal life and in helping you to create a better world? If so, how?
The awareness of the things I need to change in my life marks the beginning of success for me. By avoiding the things that lead to failure, I can achieve success. I deliberately look out for the warning signs of failure as itemized in the book, these are: Frustration Aggression, Insecurity, Loneliness, Uncertainty, Resentment, and Emptiness. Manifestation of any of these danger signs is an indication that one is on the path of failure in which immediate rectification must be made.
I see it as my personal decision not to allow these negativities to rule over me in my daily activities and interaction with the world.
I have some false assumptions that are negatively impacting my self-image. Now, my mind is being re-programmed by using CRAFT technique to cancel the old negative data in my mind. Negative thinking undermine success, so each time these unwanted thoughts show up in my mind, I engage myself in CRAFT process.
It can be clearly seen that too much reliance on people easily damages self-image. I aspire to be self-reliant in order to have self-confidence to pursue my goals. I have no right to demand that people should live up to my expectation, so why should I rely on them? This book, Psycho- Cybernetics 2000 has opened my eyes to see that it is my right to live a peaceful and happy life if I train my horse and ride it well. I am already thinking about sharing the content of this book with the world by writing a book, titled, “Ordain your Destiny”.
I have no excuse for being in a foul mood unless I am ignorant of the fact that I can absolutely control my mood. Before I had this knowledge, people around me easily get on my nerves; however I have been able to achieve a 50% success in my attempt to control my mood. I hope to make it up to 100% as time goes on. Each time I have the opportunity to talk with people in respect of how to live a balance life; I always mention the fact that we only get wounded emotionally when we leave our inner chambers. If each of us in the world lives from inside-out we’ll the able to live a purposeful and fulfilled life.
The awareness that the conscious mind is the seat of ego gives a hint on how to handle it. Those who don’t develop beyond mental intelligence are ruled by ego but once I know that there are higher intelligence levels than mental intelligence, namely emotional intelligence and spiritual intelligence; I strive to develop these higher intelligences to override my ego and other people’s ego.
The world is full of people who are ruled by ego whereby they are emotionally unstable and spiritually delinquent. While others are losing their heads because they relate with people from logic and reasoning perspective, I relate with people from my heart. This makes it possible for me to relate well and with less stress when faced with disappointments.
Relationships are easily damaged, and self-confidence is easily eroded when a person expects too much from people. The secret for anyone who wants to lead a peaceful and fulfilled life is to give more than he or she expects. Apart from material things, money, time and values can be given to others to show that one cares. The world will be a better place to live if each of us learns to give to one another instead of being blinded by scarcity mentality, which makes us to hoard. It is believed and it is true that what we give lives and what we receive dies.
Under a relaxed atmosphere, visualization is enhanced. Now, I create relaxation periods everyday to think deeply and creatively to address personal issues relating to my progress. I use creative imagination during meditation to invoke feeling of success in my heart or subconscious mind. Limitations are addressed and challenges are handled in the theatre of one’s imagination when we “ fake success” repeatedly under relaxation. The subconscious mind can’t tell the difference between a real experience and one that is vividly imagined whatever images the heart is made to feel with emotions would become a reality.
4 Quotes: Are there brief quotes from the book, which really got your attention? If so, please list and comment on them.
“ When you are scared of the present you can’t think of the future”
Fear of the future stems from fear of the present and fear of the past.
“ The lack of self-esteem is central to most personal and social ills plaguing our state and nation as we approach the end of the twentieth century”
The above statement by the California Task Force signifies that if people know how to build their esteem they’ll be able to live responsibly and overcome social vices. A person who has self- esteem will not see himself as a victim but as pathfinder. He or she will not do things because others are doing it, so they can’t be lured into crime, drug, and other vices.
“ Everyone of us acts, feels, and believed in a way that is consistent with our self-image -regardless of that image”
If you think you are attractive, you’ll behave and feel that way. You are entirely the product of the image you carry of yourself. Your beliefs are formed from your past experiences, your past successes and your past failures, and the way people have reacted to you. If you fail to challenge the validity of the ideas you entertain in your mind it becomes your belief. Unfortunately the masses of people are ignorant, so they believe negative ideas than positive ones, that is, they make use of their ‘‘destructive instinct” than their ‘’life instinct’’.
‘‘The self-image is the key element that determines whether our internal guidance system functions for success or for failure.”
If a negative self-image is changed to a positive one, success is inevitable. Three elements, the mind, the heart, and the spirit constitute our internal guidance system; if they are allowed to be in harmony, our internal system will work properly to improve our self-image and create the self-confidence we need to achieve success.
“The winner is the man or woman who does not personalize poor result. Such a person can be disappointed without feeling like a failure’’
Failure is an event and not an end in itself. Visionaries don’t see themselves as failures but the event; they mitigate challenges by attaching less importance to them in their mind. Poverty, discrimination, and other challenges will be under your feet if you develop a proper self-image.
“If we have no worthwhile personal goals, it is easy to conclude that life itself is not worth while.’’
A life that has no goal can never make an impact because it has nothing to guide it and nothing to work on. Written down goals makes you believe in your capability to achieve what you’ve set down for yourself. It gives you a picture of where you are going and keep you on track instead of wandering all over the road
“Any thing that has been learned can be reevaluated and challenged. Any thing that has been challenged can be relearned with new data to replace the old’’
The above truth can be used to change bad habits in which CRAFT and SEED have been identified as tools needed to achieve this.
CRAFT is a five-step process thus:
Cancel old negative data
Replace it with new positive data
Affirm your new self-image
Focus on an image of success
Train yourself in your new attitudes and behaviors
It is also possible to sow SEEDS to change any unwanted situation with these five steps:
View the event as a fundamentally neutral Situation
Evaluate the problem
Change your Emotions to change the situation
Do what is necessary to confront the situation
Feel your S-elf-esteem increasing as a result of your action.
5. Is there anything in the book that you do not understand or are unclear about or are there ideas which you disagree with and if so, why?
There is nothing in the book that I did not understand and I have no point of disagreement with any idea in it.
6. Did the book contain exercises you the reader to complete? If so did you complete all of the exercises and did you find then helpful?
Yes, the book contains exercises for me to complete, which I did and all the exercises were helpful in a practical way. They made me to understand the content of the book better and also know how they are applicable in real-life situations.
7. Was there any thing you read in the book that you would like to comment on that not covered in the previous question? If so, please comment.
Sense of guilt, fear, need to please all, and materialism are feelings that lead to frustration if not checked and these naturally signal the beginning of failure. Maltz Maxwell had appropriately defined failure by its acronym thus:
F- Frustration
A-Aggression
Insecurity
L- Loneliness
U- Uncertainty
R- Resentment
E- Emptiness
One or more of these seven symptoms can be found in a person who has a poor self-image. It does not mean he or she had failed but each of them is a warning sign indicating the need for quick correction if they desire success.
8. Please rate the following questions on a scale from 1 to 10. Ten is good and one is poor
A. How interesting was it to read? 10
B. How helpful were the contents? 10
C. How easy was it to understand? 10
D. Would you recommend it to other? 10
E. What is the overall rating you would give it? 10
Success Through Positive Mental Attitude
Assessment by Ayoade, Anthony Ayodeji (Nigeria)
1. What is the main idea that the author is trying to convey in the book?
The main idea has to do with the need for us to become conscious of the greatest asset we possess, that is, our minds. It can be used to either positively or negatively, depending on our own decision.
Success is attained through PMA (Positive Mental Attitude) and failure comes as a result of NMA (Negative Mental Attitude). In short, I am my own greatest friend or enemy, not any other person or situation. “We are poor – not because of God.” would have been another suitable title for the book.
2. What were the seven ideas which were personally most important to you and why? List these seven ideas followed by an explanation after each one as to why it was important to you. Use personal examples from your own life.
The first idea that is most important to me is the power of autosuggestion. Due to the wrong things I have seen, heard or felt. I have so much negative unconscious autosuggestions to contend with. Now, I know that I have to create positive conscious autosuggestions or self-suggestions to build my mind. Filling my mind consistently with positive suggestions will generate a PMA (Positive Mental Attitude). In times of challenges, my subconscious mind will automatically send positive messages to my conscious mind and other parts of my body.
The state of my subconscious mind says a lot about me because it is the seat of my habits, emotions, beliefs, values, memory and so on. I’m now aware that I can make my subconscious mind work effectively with PMA by consciously repeating positive affirmations frequently, rapidly, and emotionally. I am no more overwhelmed by challenges from my environment as it used to be. I have the power to deliberately change from NMA to PMA.
The second idea is the existence of cycles and trends in everything in life and understanding this fact creates a better attitude to handle challenges and it turns adversities into seeds of equivalent or greater benefits.
Recently, I lost some money in the stock market due to the global economic meltdown. I became wiser when I discover that the source of my mistake is ignorance of the existence of cycles and trends. I should have turned my stocks into cash when the market was booming instead of following the masses that do not understand that the only permanent thing in life is change. Now, I am in a better position to handle challenges. I don’t see them as problems but as opportunities to ask the right questions and say, “That’s good, what is the lesson in it for me?”
The third idea is that seeing is a learned process and that 90% of seeing takes place in the brain.
To see well, one must combine mental far sightedness with mental short sightedness. All eyes can look but only few eyes can see what the majority of people cannot see. The optical eyes can only see things that are in existence but the inner eyes bring things that are non – existent to reality through imagination. I had been used to seeing people’s behaviour from a shortsighted eye but now I’ve started to see that they can actually become good people in future. This consciousness in me creates a better attitude to relate with all kinds of people. I don’t need to criticize, condemn, complain, compare, or contend because the present situation that creates these negativities can change. I only need to see far ahead of everybody and every situation.
To see very well, I need to have hindsight, insight, and foresight at the same time. My challenges will be addressed easily if I am not mentally shortsighted or mentally farsighted. For example, in my finances, I’ve been seeing only the present but can neither see clearly the future nor plan for it when I had little sums of money to save. I couldn’t see that I didn’t need a big sum of money before I can become financially free but have to save slowly and steadily to reach my target. Now, I know that a child has to crawl before he or she can walk. No one can start suddenly as the top but has to move step by step.
The fourth idea is that I am a mind with a body, not a body with a mind. The body is made for the mind and not the other way round.
Seeing myself as a mind with a body makes me appreciate the importance of my mind over my body. A spiritual law says, “Body is temporal but mind never dies once it is created.” What we see is temporal and the unseen things are permanent; this is an ageless wisdom that shows the superiority of the mind over the body.
Now, I can live a powerful and balanced life if I aspire to live from my inside than from outside. That is, everything I encounter in the outer world through my body must be interpreted from my inner world, through my mind. I can either allow my body to control my mind and live an average life or allow my mind to control my body and live an exemplary life. The mind is my asset; I have to build it up to have the ability to control the body.
My aspiration is to be among the few exceptional people who use right habits, positive values, good emotions and good beliefs to control their bodies.
The fifth idea, which I gained from the book, is that I can ordain my destiny by mastering the way to use the negatives to attract the positives.
Natural law dictates that like poles repel and opposite poles attract. This law explains the reason why someone who manifests negative emotions like anger, or envy towards others does not really want people to manifest same to him or her. The idea being revealed here is important to me in that I shout at others while I don’t want people to shout at me. Now, I know a better way to relate with people. In a negative antagonistic environment, I have to use a positive attitude to overcome the wrong things. I don’t need to join the multitude to do evil.
As a child, I grew up in an environment where people never mind their own business. Their stock – in – trade is to hurt people’s feelings. I and my family encountered so mush discouragement in words and actions from our neighbours who did not see how my parents could cope with our education. I saw the situation which created emotion of anger and disappointment in me as a lesson for me to direct my efforts positively to make a success of my education.
The sixth idea is that if I appreciate things, I will also appreciate, and what I do not appreciate will depreciate.
We appreciate what we have by sharing them with others. Many times I’ve been guilty of taking things for granted. My health, relationships, knowledge, and other blessings were seen as too common to be appreciated and too personal to be shared.
Now I’ve started looking for ways to share my knowledge with people by writing books and articles for people to read. I will soon be going round secondary schools in my home town to share my knowledge on self development with youths. I possess many books on self – development which I share with friends, associates and all who desire self-improvement.
I’ve realized that as I share the good things which I enjoy, my portion of the good and desirable increases and my vision, passion, and conscience come alive. This gives me the Positive Mental Attitude that I need to direct my thoughts, to control my emotions, and to ordain my destiny.
The seventh idea is the fact that happiness begins at home and the secret of happiness for me is to make someone else happy.
I don’t need to go far before knowing whether I am sharing happiness or not. The kind of atmosphere that prevails in my home shows my attitude; charity, they say, begins at home. It is my obligation as a leader in the home to motivate members of my family to be happy just like a good sales man motivates his prospects to buy his goods and services.
My belief about child upbringing which I imbibed through my own childhood experience made me see the father in the home as a forceful personality or the authority that cannot be wrong. However, the new knowledge I am acquiring through informal books had revealed the shortcomings in this kind of attitude. Instead of training my children and relating with my wife using the wrong mentality, I now see the need to be sensitive to their reactions and my own reactions as well. I can now easily cope with the challenges from my wife and children by having a PMA.
Now I know that it is not good to try to force people to think the way I think. For happiness to exist in my relationships I cannot force another person to change; I can only be an agent of change.
3. How will these ideas or lessons help you in a practical way, both in your daily personal life and in helping you to create a better world? If so, how?
The greatest weapon I have to use to overcome all challenges in life is a Positive Mental Attitude.
My success in business or relationship depends on the effective usage of my mind. When the mind is right, the man will be right. There is no faster way for a person to kill himself than to kill his own mind through the negative suggestions that he entertains.
Now, I know that I can set myself free by feeding my mind with only positive suggestions. If I cannot see them, I can create them in my mind to fight all the negative thoughts that are trying to dominate my mind. The greatest battle I have to fight is in my mind, not any thing or any one else, and it is daily and unending as long as I am alive and kicking. That is why I’ll never stop feeding my mind with the right stuff it needs to create positive suggestions for it to entertain. I have to hear, see and read only things that will help me to have right thoughts every minute of the day, so that even when I sleep my subconscious mind will have only positive things to work on. This is my daily task.
To all and sundry, life is full of ups and downs, that is, a mixture of good and bad experiences that can happen in any situation or relationship. For me to make an headway in life, I must learn to read the world correctly, knowing its trends and cycles and preparing for the lessons it wants to teach in all situations and relationships.
I have to learn how to put the down period in the right perspective; after all I have the power to make my mind see only the things which I want it to see. I am only being special when others see a ‘down’ period but I refuse to see it their way. This happens as a result of my new perception about life.
Now, I can face life more confidently because I see people’s wrong attitudes as an opportunity for me to be more positive-minded. Whenever those challenges come, I say, “That’s good” and look for opportunities to make them stepping stones.
My mind is the most important asset that I have because it never sleeps and can be linked to the universal mind at will.
One of the steps involved in the process or the link in the chain to get connected to the universal mind is prayer. My prayer life is enhanced because I am now aware than ever before that if I have a weak link, my prayer can’t be strong. I must aspire to pray without ceasing to receive anything good and desirable.
Another link in the chain is meditation which I am now using to align my conscious and subconscious mind with the universal mind. This will help me to have an insight into the mysteries and secrets in the universe.
I have been under- utilizing my potential by failing to pray and meditate adequately in the past. I have to develop these habits more in order to see beyond the obvious and do what seems impossible to the majority. I can actually “walk on water”, if I have a very strong connection with the universe.
“The strong dominates the weak”, is a natural law that I am now trying to use to my advantage by allowing my mind to get much stronger than my body through the afore-mentioned habits of prayer and meditation.
You can imagine a world that is full of people with much more stronger minds than bodies; I have the task of adding myself to the number and implore others to join the party. Then, we’ll be having heaven on earth. But how many people are aware of this party? It means that I have a lot of awareness campaign to do in the world.
I cannot wait to break my chain of ignorance by continuously feeding my mind with relevant information it needs. I am equally exploring ways and means to get the information across to others. “Knowledge,” they say, “is power.” I use every opportunity to talk to people to inspire and motivate them while I gather my family together to do same every week; although I have a daunting task in respect of people who are ignorant and not ready to learn. It is actually not a cup of tea to convince people that they have to take several steps to get to the top. Right now, I am looking for people who can join me in this task. It is a daunting prospect but I have set the ball rolling through my books and articles.
I have committed “sins” of negligence and self-imposed limitations for a long time. These have constituted the albatross around my neck and made me suffer from lack of self-motivation.
I’ve discovered that no one can motivate me unless I am ready – a willing horse will drink water without being forced when it gets to the river. I am now penitent for my “sins”, so it is a great challenge for me to address when I discovered that I am being surrounded by people who are reveling in these “sins”. This is the more reason why I need to deliberately stay with a Positive Mental Attitude all the time.
4. Quotes: Are there brief quotes from the book which really got your attention? If so, please list and comment on them.
“Whatever a mind can conceive, and believe, it can achieve with PMA”.
The greatest asset a man possesses is the mind which can give him anything he desires. He only needs to create the picture of what he wants in his mind and entertain no iota of doubt about its reality. The mind can be used to concentrate upon a given desire until that desire becomes a burning desire which hastens its realization. The mind works with PMA when positive thoughts, words or pictures, are consciously repeated frequently, and emotionally.
“Character is something that is caught, not taught”. – Arthur Burger.
No amount if teaching can do a man any good if he is not willing to learn. Character is built from a willing mind; it can’t be forced on someone. A person will become good if he wants to be good. A person will be bad if he wants to be bad no matter how long he is coached.
“The victory within us does not assert itself until we are ready”.
Every wrong thing we don’t want can be turned around when we are ready. When we are ready, the hidden weapon inside us shows up to assist in confronting the challenges. Everyone has the capacity to develop inspirational dissatisfaction that can turn failure to success.
In most cases, challenges make people come out of their comfort zones to confront unwanted and embarrassing situations. Victory or defeat is built into very living being in form of Positive Mental Attitude and Negative Mental Attitude respectively. The power to choose either of them lies in our hands. For example, when fear comes, every human being receives an enzyme called adrenalin in his or her brain. A few will use the natural chemical to fight while most people will decide to take a flight.
The story of a man who was taking his pregnant wife to the hospital is instructive and relevant in this case. The woman was having labour pains and on the verge of delivery when their car ran into a ditch. The man furiously got out of the car and single-handedly lifted the vehicle out of the ditch back to the road- a feat he could not perform under normal circumstances.
“We are poor-not because of God”
The above statement by S.B.Fuller’s mother to her son made him develop a right attitude about life. One can have the right attitude or wrong attitude towards oneself and others. A person who has a right attitude towards himself will have a right attitude towards others. Such a person will not blame others for his or her challenges. Our attitudes determine our thoughts, words and actions, so we can change our world by changing our attitudes. Our Positive Mental Attitude makes us see that every adversity has the seed of an equivalent or greater benefit. It turns bad breaks into advantages. However, a wrong attitude or Negative Mental Attitude prevents life’s lucky breaks.
The story of the homeowner and wood dealer is relevant in this case. The woodcutter had been supplying wood to the homeowner for the past two years. On this particular occasion, the homeowner discovered that most of the woods he supplied were not cut to the right sizes. The wood dealer failed to the honour the homeowner’s invitation to come back and finish his work; therefore, the homeowner decided to do the work by himself and discovered that one of the logs he had just splited contained a blackened roll of tin foil. He was surprised that it contained very old $50 and $100 bills, which amounted to exactly $2,250.
The homeowner wanted to return the money to its original rightful owner, so he called the wood dealer again and again and asked him where he had cut the load. The wood cutter’s wrong attitude made him to think that his customer wanted to know the secret of his business in which case he refused to cooperate.
A person’s ability to respond to situation that needs his attention shows the quality of his attitude. No man should blame anyone for his challenges other than his own attitude.
“Learn to see! Seeing is a learned process”
It is a worthy exercise to learn the process of seeing, this makes one become exemplary. Whoever has learnt this process easily turns bad to good and good to best. We should not just look but learn to listen. When the mind is made to see, we’ll see what others are not seeing. And when the mind is made to listen, we’ll hear what others are not hearing. Such a mind is focused and in a better position to make use of what it sees which makes the difference between success and failure.
Whereas others were merely looking at Thomas Edison, one of the greatest inventors that ever lived, his mother saw him beyond the obvious. Despite being written off as a dullard by his teachers, Edison’s mother has a firm belief in her son. His mother’s belief caused ,./ Edison to view himself in an entirely different light. It caused him to change from being a failure to an inventor.
What you see is what you get: Edison’s mother was far-sighted enough to see her child as a success and it rubbed off on him.
“When you act as you must, the habit of procrastination dies from not being fed, and no one laments its passing.” – Napoleon Hill
It is naturally easy to put off things we need to do today till tomorrow but our mission bear the brunt of procrastination, and a good vision that is not acted on results in no mission. Definitely, procrastination is an enemy that we all need to defeat by all means.
“The man who has any good habit is well on his way to gaining other good habits.”
Like bad habits, good habits also produce their own kind. For example, a person who develops the habit of meditation will sooner or later gain habit to prudence, innovation and so on.
“Character is the cornerstone in building and maintaining success” – Orison Swett Marden
Success is more than acquisition of money. Those who sacrifice their reputation, families, health, and everything for money are failures regardless of how much money they may accumulate.
“There is very little difference in people, but that little difference makes a big difference”
The very little difference, which most people fail to recognize as what they need to be among the special ones, is positive attitude. Attitude makes the big difference between success and failure.
Positive attitude makes you have the right values, it makes you possess the right beliefs, and it makes you ask the right questions, it makes you see each experience positively, and makes you show positive emotions irrespective of any condition.
“People secretly hope that something good will come to them, but they do not share any of the good which they enjoy.”
We need to realize that all the good and desirable things we possess must be shared with others, otherwise they will diminish. The good and desirable things include money, prayer, encouragement and other material things. As these things are being shared, our minds get awakened and strengthened to direct our thoughts towards a positive end.
“ Likes poles repel and opposite poles attract”
Application of the above tested and time- proven law in our relationships definitely leads to results. Conflicts usually occur between two parties: husband and wife or mother and child who have similar personalities. An aggressive dominant personality will find it difficult to get along with a person having a similar nature. If we want our relationships to work, it is important to know the particular personality that each individual belong so as to guide us in relating with one another.
Human beings easily judge people’s reaction based on their own reactions to others. A person who is abusive thinks and acts as if others are abusive. Such a mindset assumes that others think and act like him or her.
5. Is there anything in the book that you do not understand? If so, please list and comment on them.
There is actually nothing in the book that I do not understand.
6. Did the book contain exercises for the reader to complete? If so, did you complete all of the exercises and did you find them helpful?
The book contains exercises for readers to complete which I attempted and were helpful in making me to understand the contents of the book more.
7. Was there anything you read in the book that you would like to comment on that was not covered in the precious question? If so please comment.
There is nothing in the book that I need to comment on apart from what had been stated above.
8. Please rate the following questions on a scale from 1 to 10. Ten is good and one is poor
A. How interesting was it to read? 9
B. How helpful were the contents? 9
C. How easy was it to understand? 9
D. Would you recommend it to other? 9
E. What is the overall rating you would give it? 9
Real Magic
Assessment by Ayoade Anthony Ayodeji (Nigeria)
1. What is the main idea that the author is trying to convey in the book?
The main idea is about living a life based on purpose, whereby miracle will not cease to occur in one’s life in terms of personality, prosperity, relationships, and health. The condition is an open mind and willing suspension of disbelief but to cultivate a new, self-declared openness to anything and everything being a possibility.
Only a life based on purpose can create a miracle mindset that is no longer hindered by fear and doubt but enhanced by faith (trusting and knowing) leading to empowerment and love.
2. What were the seven ideas which were personally most important to you and why? List these seven ideas followed by an explanation after each one as to why it was important to you. Use personal examples from your own life.
KNOWLEDGE OF IDENTITY
My identity is not defined by my geographical location, my culture, my background or any other factor other than the path I choose to tread and the course I decide to chart. For me to live a purposeful life, I’ve learnt that I must not follow the herd. “If you follow the herd the adage says, “You’ll end up stepping in shit”. While others chase or run towards rewards and results or define themselves based on their material possessions, I know that everything I need to become or what I really want depends on the quality of my mind, heart, and spirit.
My personality is not defined by the people’s beliefs and perception but my own thoughts, remember, “As a man thinketh, so is he”. Once I remove all doubts about my identity and what I can become, my self confidence soars. If I think I am a miracle and believed it, I will start acting like a ‘superman’ in the real world.
The key to a life of miracle is in our thoughts, the wondrous invisible part of us that is known as the mind. Man is basically a soul that is not limited by space and time. The mysteries surrounding him show that nothing is impossible for him to become, or does he know how the bones of babies grow in their mother’s womb? The knowledge of my identity is gradual and never ending and the revelation depends on my daily meditation on the kind of person I really want to become.
Make effort to know about your strengths and weaknesses so that you don’t defend your weakness, otherwise it becomes permanent in your life.
To have self-confidence, you must know your purpose and aspire to know yourself better and better daily.
Act what you want and never entertain fear in any way. If you want to be successful, the intention must be established in your inner world first. If your inner world does not know what you want, you can’t get it, so the choice is yours to make your intention known first of all in your inner self.
My identity is located in that invisible, dimensionless realm called thoughts, meaning I have no boundary and no limits. All that I need for my life is with me already, so I actually lack nothing, but if I feel that I am lacking anything, it is just my own mental creation in my own world.
SPIRITUAL REVOLUTION: NEW WAY OF THINKING
When enough people get together to think alike positively, they create a force that brings about a positive invisible revolution. People who live by the new consciousness that believing is seeing do influence the physical world with their thoughts. According to Wayne Dyer, “The miracle of cooperation rather than competition is the beginning phase of a transition to a more positive, safe, loving world”.
There is a new consciousness of spiritual awakening; leaders meant to carry out this spiritual revolution are emerging. One of such great ideas to bring about change in Nigeria came from one of my mentors, Fela Durotoye, who is seeing beyond the hopelessness in the country today. He formed a group in 2005 called GEMSTONE, the essence of which is to build a generation that is motivated and stirred to operate in natural excellence by year 2025. To create a new collective consciousness in the minds of people that Nigeria will soon become a great nation. Definitely, if people’s collective thoughts are of peace, love, unity, and faith, those seeds will be manifested in their physical realities.
SURRENDERING LEADS TO MIRACLE
Miracle is defined as a welcome event so extraordinary that it is believed to be the work of God or supernatural occurrence.
No one actually needs to demand for miracle because it is naturally encountered once the condition for it is created. Surrendering gives rise to beliefs and practices that lead to miracle.
The personal story narrated by Wayne Dyer who used to sit under “his tree” while praying that the rose on it will fall to his waiting hand is illustrative on the power of surrendering. That particular rose never fell into his hand until a windless, unexpected morning when he was not concentrating on his wish. It was when he let go of his demand for the rose to fall that he was given the answer he needed.
The lesson here is that I don’t need to demand for things but give or surrender to become a true miracle worker. For example, a mind that surrenders is a mind that gives and a mind that gives is the one that leads to receiving.
Surrendering the mind means getting in touch with your higher self, this is always with you, and allowing this natural part of you to rule. You surrender your five senses for your soul, it gets you relaxed and removes the stress of striving and struggling from yourself to make life become easy and fascinating.
Surrendering sharpens your spiritual intelligence; you develop a mind-set that gets you detached from what you see or the physical environment: the chaos, the noise, the unfriendly eyes, the abuse, your position, your age, your physical possessions or anything external to yourself.
Surrendering makes you see all manner of physical world attributes as non-existent; you operate basically as a soul and interact with others as souls. It makes you see the best and highest in people rather than who they are at the moment.
My inability to surrender is the reason why I operate a master-servant relationship with people. However, I’ll bring the best out of them by aligning with them through self-discipline or getting detached from my physical senses, attributes and possessions.
HAVING SUCCESSFUL RELATIONSHIPS
Mind, where thoughts emanate is the key to relationships. We interpret what people do through the meaning we give it in our minds. If you think about people’s weaknesses, dislike and distrust will define your relationships with them: We act on what we think about. The other way round, if a relationship is great in your thought, that will be your total experience of it. To manifest miracles in your relationships, when you feel offended, don’t think negative. Have the self-discipline to create good thoughts in your mind toward others which will match up with the kind of relationship you wish to have.
Our relationships reflect how our body, mind, heart, and spirit relate. If these elements are in alignment, such a life will be wholesome and empower other people’s lives. Your actions towards others are a reflection of what you are in your inner world; if you don’t have a good self-image, you cannot relate successfully with people. It is not the abuse directed at you that caused your anger; it is because that’s what is inside you. Remember, an orange will always give out its juice irrespective of who squeezed it. What you give is what you get; you can’t give what you don’t have.
Relationships can’t be forced to work, you’ve got to use your intuition or listen to your inner voice to know a one-sided relationship and move on with your life while you must continue to give love. Otherwise, you may return to suffering as the way of learning your relationship lessons.
In my mind, I have shifted from seeing my marriage from a physical point of view to a spiritual marriage, that is, I now see my wife as a soul rather than body in our relationship. In times of challenges I look beyond the wish that my partner will act in accordance with my desires; I can’t force people to change; I can only help them to change when they are ready. My own responsibility is to make up my mind to let go of the outcome as long as I have the right intentions of making my marriage work. Once I make up my mind to make the marriage work I’ll continue to act consistently with my intention irrespective of my partner’s response. I know that on the long run, a right relationship will appear at the right frequency I operate if I remain on course. Mahatma Ghandi said, “You cannot change the people; you must be the change you wish to see in people”.
My reality is what I think, a happy relationship is a result of “happy” thoughts; my relationship is as good as what I think of it.
LIVING A PROPEROUS LIFE
Prosperity comes when you are in flow and giving of yourself in a purposeful manner. You are not prosperous if you are purposeless in your soul, we have examples of rich men who went bankrupt because the quality of their lives were based on what they have accumulated compared with others. Any wealth you have in your hand that you don’t have the mindset, prudence, or wisdom to hold can’t stay long with you.
Let us listen to Wayne Dyer:
“When you are on purpose, doing what you know you are here for, and forgetting about what will come into your life in the way of money and wealth, then money and wealth arrive in your life in amounts sufficient to provide you with a life of prosperity.
“When I chased after money. I never had enough. When I got my life on purpose and focused on giving of myself and everything that arrived into my life, then I was prosperous.”
Human beings want visible things like money and other physical possessions, but what we actually need are invisible things like sense of security, peace, and inner satisfaction. The place of the invisible is the mind, and the invisible is sustained by the invisible: our thoughts.
Prosperity is not outside of you; therefore don’t run after material things, it only creates a sense of lack which works against living a prosperous life. It makes you see things from “I don’t have enough” mentality or ‘something is missing” mentality and something will continue to miss till you die. Create a prosperity mind-set by entertaining belief that you are actually complete and lack absolutely nothing. You have to remove all negative beliefs in lack or scarcity mentality and competitive spirit which keep you comparing yourself with others in terms of what you lack. What you think is what you act upon, and it makes you who you are.
To become truly prosperous, see yourself as neither superior nor inferior to anyone, therefore, you neither have to envy anyone nor exhibit pride. Envy puts a ceiling on your growth and pride goes before a fall. Brian Tracy made us know that envying successful people creates a negative field which hinders you from doing all you need to do to become successful.
We had much competitive spirit built into us while growing up: to come out on top of the class; to have the best job or car and so on. It had always been the business of getting us to believe that we are better than others. All of us have one way or the other bought into this big lie in various areas of our lives, which kept us running the rat-race.
If I am not grateful to God for what He has given to others, my own way to prosperity may not be smooth. My expression of gratitude creates a positive force around me which attracts peace, joy, love and repels destructive emotions of envy, greed, guilt, fear, and so on. I have realized that I can’t give what I don’t have; when I rejoice in the prosperity of others I will have joy in my heart and makes me to never feel inadequate for people’s successes. Sooner than later, my own will come.
POSSESSING PHYSICAL HEALTH
Positive thoughts lead to a positive way of life, in prosperity, in relationships, in self-image, and in personal health.
A sick man who can create positive thoughts in line with his desire for healing without thinking about any outcome which can make him vacillate will sooner than later encounter a miracle. Creating positive thoughts which are in line with your desire without demanding an outcome always lead to actualization. In short, visualization is the mother of actualization, if you image a healthy life you will get it; what you see is what you get.
A sound mind leads to a sound body, so I have to pay attention first to my spiritual invisible self and only secondarily to my physical self or body.
Sickness is experienced only in the body; where the body is allowed to reign, suffering is experienced but when the soul is made strong; it controls the body and reign over it. A sick soul is worse than a sick body; if the body is sick but the soul is healthy, a healthy body is at hand. Wayne Dyer said, “There is no reality except the one contained within us. This is why so many people live such an unreal life. They take the images outside them for reality and never allow the world within to assert itself.”
POWER OF MEDITATION
“Within you there is a stillness and a sanctuary to which you can retreat at any time and be yourself”- Herman Hesse
The reality of life speaks to us in silence. Seeing into nothingness – that’s the true seeing, the eternal seeing.
The spiritual dimension is where all things are possible and all learning is available to those who are guided by its principles and positive values of love, peace, joy, service.
Going within to the peaceful solitude of the mind to access divine guidance, the soul or the higher part of oneself is made possible through mediation. It gives the opportunity for one to become an authentic spiritual being having a human experience instead of the other way round.
Meditation leads to self-discovery when these relevant questions are asked, “How may I give my life to others?”, “How can I be the best and most purposeful person I can be?”, “Why am I here?”, “Who am I?” I deeply seek answers to these questions daily and it has led to formation of my goals, better understanding of my identity, and development of my values. “Quality questions”, Anthony Robbins stated, “create a quality life. Successful people ask better questions, and as a result, they get better answers.”
During mediation, you let go of everything in the physical world: the surrounding, the sun, the people around you , the cloth you are wearing, surrender your whole self to the universe and allow it to work in the perfect way it knows how to. Send out what you have in your heart to all: love, peace, joy, gratitude, service. The process puts your mind and body at rest and when they are in harmony with the universe, miracle happens and you experience a blissful state as any drug could temporally provide.
When you listen or carry out any assignment with a meditative spirit, attractive emotions flow and destructive emotions flee, the body performs extraordinarily.
You can create an atmosphere in which your mind is clear and free of distractions by external activities, where interruptions are not tolerated. To get to the state of focus, the mind can be trained to focus, to eliminate the endless mind chatter that fills our consciousness. The intention to discover how to make contact with the higher part of yourself is more important than having formal meditation training. You can actually evolve your own technique of connecting in a loving way to everything in the universe.
Franz Kafka said, “You do not need to leave your room. Remain sitting at your table and listen. Do not even listen, simply wait. Do not even wait, be quiet, still and solitary. The world will freely offer itself to you to be unmasked, it has no choice, it will roll in ecstasy at your feet”.
I set aside 30 minutes to be alone and peacefully go within and quiet my mind, setting myself free from inner quarrel with life. I sit in a comfortable position, close my eyes and simply focus on emptying my mind and becoming intensely aware of my breathing. I feel the love that is around me which I can sense as I remain quiet enough. As I do this, I transcend time and space, and I go to the very presence of God, in state of harmony and bliss that transcend anything.
I spend these few minutes daily in awe to make me enter a state of enlightenment or silent acceptance and appreciation of the universe. I become thankful and appreciative, with a sense of responsibility to the universe and think over my spiritual aspirations for improving myself and others.
My thoughts come out of the silent empty space of my mind. As I try to empty my mind of thought, other thoughts emerge. To meditate effectively, I have to lose all contact with my senses and experience only the nothingness of my mind. No touch, no taste, no hearing, no sight, no smell. As I let go of my attachment to my body through my mind, the less I use my physical state as a way of assessing my life.
3. How will these ideas or lessons help you in a practical way, both in your daily personal life and in helping you to create a better world? If so, how?
Once I know that my real identity is based on my thoughts, I henceforth refuse to base my personality on another person’s definition. Similarly, I have stopped defining other people’s lives based on my own thinking or expectations, an action that has brought peace to me and others in our relationships. The world will become heaven on earth when we have peace reigning in our hearts. The message of peace, progress, and unity has become the good news which I share with people who are still having challenges in their relationships.
Just as a seed must be surrendered for it to grow and become a fruit-bearing tree, I’ve seen the need for me to surrender my body, mind, heart, and soul for the use of the universal power, after all they were given to me for a purpose. Any positive act that I perform with a surrendered heart will definitely produce good results, for example, if I can start giving with a willing mind, I will affect many lives positively.
Now, I see my relationships with others from spiritual perspective, and in spiritual partnership, all of us are followers of the universal intelligence, no one is superior or inferior. I find it easier to cope with challenges in my relationships because now I relate with people’s souls which transcends pettiness, it is not limited by space and time. The challenges I face in my marriage are purposeful although I may not fully know this now. When my partner does not act based on purpose, I see her as part of my play that I am co-starring, I honor her appearance even if she played her roles badly, later on I know that I’ll understand the reason why she showed up in my play.
I’ve made up my mind to start living on purpose, that is, loving and giving. I’ve realized that life, like prosperity is not an event, but a process; both are not based on one outcome but staying the course and surrendering the outcome to purpose and higher power. My strivings and struggling to achieve do not guaranty success but surrendering my five senses, my money, my time, and my possessions for the invisible force that is always with me. As I savor the enjoyment of my works by surrendering, stress to achieve, envy, fear, and so on are eliminated.
When I hold tight, I allow my possessions to become my possessor; this is the reason why I experience scarcity mentality. Now, as I release, I have fulfillment which puts me in the flow naturally, since my aim now is to serve and not to make quick money, spiritual abundance is experienced inside me. Spiritual abundance, of course will soon lead to physical abundance because the invisible creates the visible.
As I was reading chapter 7 on REAL MAGIC AND YOUR PHYSICAL HEALTH in this book, a real life story which encouraged me a lot came to mind. Freddy Spencer Chapman, a British Soldier got stranded in the thick jungle of Malaya during the Second World War. It was a miracle that he survived bullet wounds, dehydration, hunger, sickness and intolerable weather conditions in the forest. He survived the torture due to his inner strength, by visualizing himself as a survivor, not a dead man in the jungle. This story authenticates the fact that the body can be made to withstand unimaginable pressure when the soul has a strong will-power.
Meditation gives me an inner script to follow in order to manifest what I truly want to experience in the physical world, a wonderful marriage or relationships, a prosperous life, a good personality or healthy life. Within me is the kingdom of serenity that can create all of these things that I could ever want. I only need to visit the place daily and look steadfastly at the pictures that reflect what I want in my internal screen.
Mediation gives me the opportunity to know my invisible self and empty my mind of external activities in order to attain calmness. It teaches me to receive answers where confusion existed before and fortunately I can visit the peaceful place anytime: In the middle of a business meeting, in the midst of confusion or athletic competition. Yes, I can leave my physical body and enter the kingdom of heaven that is within me and come back to truly experience miracle. When I experience miracle, the people around me are bound to have a feel of it.
4. Quotes: Are there brief quotes from the book which really got your attention? If so, please list and comment on them.
(a) “You need not live a life of sickness.
You need not die from ill health.
It is your natural state to be healthy.
It is your right to live a perfectly healthy life right up to the day
you die of natural causes”. – Jose Silva
Each of us can create good health and encounter healing miracles in our lives once we have the consciousness and decide to use our minds to create and receive it.
(b) “There is no reality except the one contained within us
This is why so many people live such an unreal life
They take the images outside them for reality and
Never allow the world within to assert itself” – Wayne Dyer.
Everything we see, hear or feel are as real as what we take them to be. We have the power to interpret any wrong event we encounter as an empowering one, once we are able to do this in our mind, we will rule our world.
(c) “Possession of material riches, without inner peace, is like dying
of thirst while bathing in a lake. If material poverty is to be avoided,
spiritual poverty is to be abhorred! For it is spiritual poverty, not
material lack, that lies at the core of all human suffering” – Paramhansa Yogananda
Building our spiritual capacities should be our uppermost desire in our effort
to prosper, then we can allow the universe to take over in all of its perfection.
(d) “Ask nothing and you will receive much But if the receiving is your
aim, you will be living a life of constant deficiency.” – Wayne Dyer
We should not live our lives based on results or outcome of events alone but on purpose. Results should not be our source of motivation but our inner awareness of having a worthy mission and staying with it, regardless of outcomes.
(e) “The soul never thinks without a picture” – Aristotle
We can change what we think by changing the picture or images we create for the mind to see. Beautiful pictures bring beautiful thoughts which translate to beautiful ideas. Power of visualization can be used to see anything you desire and what you see is what you get”
(f) “If one advance confidently in the direction of his own dreams and endeavors to live the life which he has imagined, he will meet a success unexpected in common hours.”
Dream and imaginations are thoughts. Everyone is as good as the quality of dreams and imaginations they have.
(g) “The processes of surrendering, focusing and living of purpose lead
to ecstasy.”
Our instinct makes us to strive and struggle but the conscious ones have learnt to surrender and stay with the process which eliminates envy, fear, jealousy, guilt etc. Instead of being stressed up, discerning people enjoy the process since they know that it delivers the outcome irrespective of striving. Process is about purpose, and purpose is about loving and giving.
(h) “The ignorant work for their own profit, the wise work for the
welfare of the world, without thought for themselves”
Thinking about others more than self brings joy which drives away wrong emotions. A joyful heart cannot be ruled by fear, envy, guilt and other negative feelings. Thinking much about self without considering other people’s welfare is tantamount to selfishness. Such people are ruled by the world . A purposeful life cannot be experienced when you are only interested in getting more for yourself, particularly if it is at the expense of others. Mind your state of mind and how you use it to align with your purpose rather than achievements and acquisitions.
(i) “Switch from wishes to intentions in your relationship”
Shakespeare said “If wishes were horses, beggars would ride”. Don’t just wish a relationship you intend to create and how you intend to conduct yourself, make up your mind on these.
No one is ready to act according to someone else’s desires; he or she wants to be free due to man’s natural instinct. To insist that people must change merely leads to frustration because you can’t make people change until they are ready, you can only assist them to change. Love all, but refuse to allow other people’s weaknesses to become your own.
(j) “Circumstance do not make a man, they reveal him”
– James Allen
There is no excuse for failure, stumbling blocks are supposed to be our stepping stones to ordain our destiny.
(k) “Miracles do not, and will not, occur in your life or anyone’s life because of some demand”
You don’t need to demand for a seed to become a tree, you only need to give it to the soil and allow it to follow the process needed to make it serve its purpose. Fulfillment of conditions makes miracles to happen, once the conditions exist, you don’t need to demand for it but only wait. An egg will hatch once it is incubated and a river will flow without being forced.
Your right beliefs and surrendering leads to miracles, this is why God works miracles with you, not for you. To create the atmosphere for miracle, get yourself detached from the visible or physical interpretation of what you see, hear or feel: the chaos, the noise, the unfriendly eyes, the abuse, your position or your age.
You only need to understand how invisible things produce visible things, then you’ll be having miracles. Invisible molecules of hydrogen combine with invisible molecules of oxygen to produce the visible water once all conditions are met. What a miracle!
(l) “Purpose is about giving”
Purpose is about giving, and relationship is about giving. You can’t give what you lack; if you harbor love and compassion, love and compassion are what you give away. Purpose is about giving yourself to others unconditionally and accepting what comes back with love, even if what comes back is not what you expected. Purpose is the awareness that the more you give away, the more you get; the more you hold, the less you have.
(m)“How far you go in life depends on your being tender with the young, compassionate with the aged, sympathetic with the striving and tolerant of the weak and the strong. Because
someday in life you will have been all of these” – George Washington Carver.
Our relationship with people is an opportunity to fulfill our divine purpose in life. However, you must firstly endeavor to have a good relationship with your soul, mind and your body, by seeing them as one; the experience of unity you have within yourself gets you ready to share this sense of wholeness with others. Of course, if you have peace within yourself that is what you have to give away regardless of how others interact with you.
(n) “You are already complete, already whole, and nothing external to yourself in the physical world can make you anymore complete”.
Create a mind-set of self-sufficiency in material things and allow yourself to be purposeful, peace will come to your mind to make you live a more balanced life. Then, the materials things you used to crave will come to you in abundance.
(o) “Send out love and let those who continue to abuse themselves, and you, do so to themselves if that is their path, but not to you any longer” – Wayne Dyer
Our purpose in life is to love and serve without really being a door-mat. A worthy example in this case is Mahatma Ghandi who stated thus: My life is an indivisible whole, and all my attitudes run into one another, and they all have their rise in my insatiable love for mankind. “You’ll be able to put on the toga of love if you ask nothing of anyone and practice unconditional acceptance”, it is the way Wayne Dyer explained it further.
Don’t look up to people to live up to your expectations and you’ll get a true sense of freedom.
(p) “The Kingdom of heaven is within you”
We live and have our being in the one true spirit that holds the universe. To develop your spiritual intelligence, you must get detached from what you see or the physical environment: the chaos, the noise, the unfriendly eyes, the abuse, your position, you age, your physical possessions or anything external to yourself.
Infinite or spiritual intelligence makes you see things from a dimension where all things are possible and all learning is available. It grows by exercising our freedom of choice within the limits of spiritual or positive values: love, peace, giving, forgiveness, etc. When our freedom is exercised wrongly, our conscience makes it known; listening to the voice of our conscience makes us become spiritually intelligent.
(q) “You will not be punished for your anger, you will be punished by your anger” -Buddha
The peace and joy that is supposed to exist in your inner self will not be there if anger and other destructive emotions are entertained. The fact that you harbour the kingdom of heaven inside you makes you a miracle worker. For you to manifest miracles and become a spiritual person, isolate people who have wronged you in your mind. Be grateful for the lessons they’ve taught you and send them love. To avoid being punished by the killer venom called anger and its associates, overlay the negativities with this affirmation by Wayne Dyer, “I know I have the power within me to create a life of fulfillment and joy. I am a miracle and therefore I am a creator of miracles”.
(r) “All that you fight weakens you; all that you support empowers you”
Instead of struggling against your weaknesses or wrong values, befriend your positive values. Look for things that you love and stay focused on them, for example, I am against my child’s laziness and for his being an honest youth. To eliminate stress and disharmony between us, I have to focus on the good habit I want than the wrong habits he is showing at the moment. Concentrating on his good habits creates in me good thoughts and love needed to make him change his bad habits.
(s) “A mind at peace, a mind centered and not focused on harming others, is stronger than any physical force in the universe”.
A real powerful person does not need external force to control others and see people as his victims. He does not allow for enemies in his consciousness and refuse to dominate others but to empower his inner self.
Alignment with our souls is our very purpose for being here; it is the reason why every one of us has a conscience to assist us to be in harmony with ourselves. Therefore, no external power or force is needed by you to have private victory which automatically leads to public victory for you; all you need is more personal empowerment. You need not see yourself as being oppressed since you are aware of your inner power otherwise, you will be full of conflicts and confrontations which hinders spiritual flow.
You will ask nothing of others and not get bothered about outcomes, not because you are proud, but because you have self sufficient power inside you.
You must get empowered everyday to be at peace with people who you have to unavoidably stay connected with because all beings are in one universe.
You will only end up defining yourself as a judgmental person if you try to define others by your judgments.
The divine law enjoined us to love others as we love ourselves; remembering our purpose on earth makes it easier to do. Mother Theresa enunciated this in her words, “The fruit of love is service, which is compassion in action. Religion has nothing to do with compassion, it is our love for God that is the main thing because we have all been created for the sole purpose to love and be loved.”
(t) “We are born into the world of nature; our second birth is into the world of spirit.” – Bhagavad-Gita
I am not an exclusively physical person but a spiritual being having a human experience. There exists a higher place I can go within my mind, an inner world known as thought, feeling and imagination, it has real structure and exist in its own space or dimension. However, this dimension where miracles exist cant relate with my five sense organs and can’t be proved with a logical mind.
(u) “Imagination is more important than knowledge” – Albert Einstein
Whatever you have the power to imagine, you can realize, in fact everything that became a reality today started in form of imagination. You only need to replace the belief that something you are capable of imagining in your mind is impossible with the belief that it is possible.
(v) “The world is not to be put in order, the world is order incarnate. It is for us to put ourselves in unison with this order”
Nothing happens by accident, everything in the universe has a purpose. Great minds know that the true path towards greater awareness or enlightenment is through their knowledge of living based on purpose. Great people base their existence on the future while others live their lives based on what happened yesterday and what is happening today. There are three types of people: One, majority who learn through suffering, the second type is those who get enlightened through outcome. They ask, “What can I learn from this event? rather than asking every time, “Why is this happening to me?” The few people who belong to the third category are those who have greater awareness through their knowledge of purpose. Victor Frankl endured the brutality of a Nazi concentration camp during the Second World War simply because he viewed his presence on earth from higher perspective. In one of his books, he said, “Nothing is more likely to help a person overcome or endure troubles than the consciousness of having a task in life.
Prayer and meditation are two habits that can reveal our purpose in life. Concerning purpose, Robin Sharma said, “….. To live wisely, love greatly, and serve well”, Stephen Covey said, “…..to live, to love, to learn, and to leave a legacy”, Wayne Dyer said, “…..to give, to serve, to promote peace and prosperity and to become totally, unconditionally loving to all people”.
5. Is there anything in the book that you do not understand or are unclear about, or are there ideas which you disagree with, and if so, why?
There is basically nothing in the book that I did not understand and there is no idea that I disagree with.
6. Did the book contain exercises for the reader to complete?
The book does not contain exercises for the reader to complete.
7. Was there anything in the book that you would like to comment on that was not covered in the previous questions? If so, please comment.
KEYS TO PROSPERITY
I made note of these points below from the book as keys that one can use to open door of prosperity:
* Remove negative beliefs that promote scarcity mentality and failure. Our beliefs, positive or negative are invisible ingredients in all of our activities. You are what you belief or think.
* Use the power of auto-suggestion to overcome limiting beliefs and negative suggestions in your mind.
* Develop your intuitive power to see beyond the obvious and have trust in your inner voice.
* Don’t glorify any physical material and see the folly of making the material world your master.
* Develop the faith that you can actually process anything you desire strongly in your mind (Mark 11:23-24).
* Have confidence in your ability; remember that when you trust in yourself, you trust in God that created you. When you doubt yourself, you question that same power that created you. Instead of being agitated and doubtful, just surrender and relax. Nature will take care of everything else once the conditions are favorable; no one needs to force a river to flow.
* Act as it you have received what you want or desire. Positive belief without action is effective. For example, a person who believes he is prosperous and acts by giving despite being in physical lack will soon experience abundance.
* When you have mastered the act of giving to others, then practice the equally important act of giving to yourself. Take a percentage of all that comes to you in the form of money, and invest it in yourself.
* Develop the right attitude about money. See money as the energy you can use to stay on purpose, it is not meant for hoarding or using it to prove your superiority, otherwise you will never get enough of it. Money and material possessions are to assist you on your goals in the invisible realm.
* Don’t expect others to do what you have to do, if they do it for a while, it will fade out. All you need for sustainability is inside you not outside you. Disappointment will always face someone who keeps looking outward for sustenance.
* Learn to create pictures of what you want in your mind.
* Don’t demand anything, loosen up and be willing to allow a miracle to happen without any insistence and then everything will come to you that you need.
Rating
A. How interesting was it to read? 10
B. How helpful were the contents? 10
C. How easy was it to understand? 10
D. Would you recommend it to others? 10
E. What is the overall rating you would give it? 10
Giant Steps
Assessment by Ayoade, Anthony Ayodeji
1. What is the main idea that the author is trying to convey in his book?
Stephen Covey tries to unravel the mystery of human behavior by making his readers to understand the tools that facilitate positive change and truly enhance the quality of human lives: our beliefs, our words, our emotions, our references, our values, and the quality of the questions we ask.
2. What were the seven ideas which were personally most important to you and why? List these seven ideas followed by an explanation after each one as to why it was important to you? Use personal examples from your own life.
Idea #1: Commitment Leads To Success
Commitment to higher standard makes you act to improve the quality of your life. No one ever achieved a goal by just being interested in its achievement, one must be committed to it.
You can prosper and have sound health, good relationships and admirable personality by raising the standards or goal you hold for your life and making a decision to live up to them despite challenges. There and then, challenges become stepping stones or opportunities for growth while trying to achieve your goals.
A committed person is one who had identified the right things to do and does them consistently by using the power of the mind to exercise will-power. Commitment is the ability to become result-oriented, to set priorities and focus on what is important until the goals are achieved. Failure to set standards or goals to follow makes you prone to distractions and dissipation of your energy on many things at a time; it makes you do things without doing them well. To become successful you must focus on a few things, it is possible to do many things and yet do nothing. After identifying a particular area you want to excel, concentrate your resources on it consistently; in this way 20% of your efforts brings 80% of your results according to the Pareto principle or the 80/20 Rule.
Decision to get committed to higher standards in every area of life determines man’s destiny, he may not be able to control the events but he can control his response to them. It is his choice to procrastinate or address immediately any shortcoming in his finances, relationships, health and personality.
At a time, I noticed that my relationship with my family was suffering due my tight schedule; I had to arrange a retreat with them and also purchase a scrabble game that we play together. In the words of Anthony Robbins, “The more decision you make, the better you’ll become at making them”; it becomes easier for me to make subsequent decisions that improved relationship between me and my family based on the initial decisions that I made above.
Sometimes ago, I overworked myself over some projects that I was given to execute, consequently, my health was affected badly. As an employee, I may not be able to control the amount of jobs assigned to me, but I had the power to take some personal decisions to improve my health: I stopped eating red meat; I eat less starchy food, and more fruits, and I go on vacation every year. All of us have the power to react appropriately to all challenges in every area of our lives, the decisions we take on the events that come our way determine our success.
Idea #2: Pain and Pleasure Bring Success
The secret of success is learning how to use the twin-emotions of pain and pleasure to your advantage. You’ll never live a great life if you link pleasure to material acquisitions, drinking, smoking, overeating, or verbally abusing others. Your life becomes fulfilled if you link an immense amount of pleasure to exercising, learning, helping others, discipline, and service. In the words of Anthony Robbins, “Real success is to live your life in a way that causes you to consistently feel an immense amount of pleasure and very little pain – and because of your lifestyle, to have the people around you consistently feel a lot more pleasure and very little pain.”
What you do when you want to feel better determines what you get in life. Make a bad habit painful and a good habit pleasurable- and you will be irresistibly drawn to the right things.
Turning a seemingly painful event into a pleasurable opportunity to learn, grow, or help others is a power of choice that all human beings posses. What gives you pain and pleasure shapes your life.
Average minds engage themselves in wrong vices that look like gain in their conscious minds, and when they see greatness in others who engage themselves in activities which ordinary people see as pain, it is assumed to be luck. Average minds and great minds use their natural endowments differently; the latter use their minds to see pain as a messenger but the former use their minds to see pain as a fearful master. Mother Theresa saw the pain she went through as a messenger when she was not able to help the poor woman who died in her hands in India due to lack of medical attention. She used the pain to live a life of service by alleviating the suffering of thousands of people all over the world. She transformed the pain encountered by her into pleasure.
You may consciously want to put your finance or health back in shape but subconsciously in your heart you are not interested.
Search your soul and be honest with yourself, otherwise, you’ll be mixing pain with pleasure. Half hearted people are ruled by pain and pleasure at the same time in what Anthony Robbins called “mixed emotions” or “mixed association” which are behind most patterns of self -sabotage. He said, “If you’ve ever found yourself taking two steps forward and one step back, invariably it’s because you have mixed association”. I had been a victim of mixed emotions in the area of finance due to my inability to separate perception from reality: I wanted to be rich yet I don’t want to be rich. I dwelled on the fact that no rich man can enter the kingdom of God, and the love of money is the root of all evil. But now I know that God owns all the riches and the real problem in the world arises from the fact that money is in wrong hands; our planet will become a better place if those who are rich become more generous.
To become successful emotionally, our job is to find words which will make us have more pleasure than pain anytime we face challenges, we must learn to use words that are less intense than the reality. To say, “life is a game” creates pleasure than to say, “Life is a battle”. The goal is simply to consistently feel less pain and more pleasure in our lives in order to achieve success.
Idea # 3: Beliefs Can Create Or Destroy
Beliefs have the power to create and the power to destroy; they are powerful, hence we need to take the following actions in order to overcome limiting beliefs that may jeopardize our destiny:
– Consciously decide what you are going to believe
– Find out whether your beliefs are not based on a misinterpretation of the past.
– Give room for flexibility when new beliefs that give another perspective show up.
Whichever belief you construct is the one that will be true for you; you will understand this better if you take a look at the two statements below:
1. People are honest
2. People are dishonest
These two ideas are beliefs because each of them can be supported with enough references. Any one of them that you choose as your own belief has the power to either create or to destroy your relationships; your chosen belief drives all of your behavior towards people.
It should be noted that some beliefs can become powerful in our minds, whereby they become a conviction; and some ideas can also become less powerful and be placed as an opinion in our minds.
Your belief can be empowering or disempowering, it depends on what they make you to do. If your belief gives you a strong emotion and a sense of certainty that you can never fail, it becomes a conviction.
To develop a conviction, you need the power of imagination to see beyond the obvious, to see beyond failure or what has happened in the past. The more the references you have to back up your empowering belief, the more it becomes a conviction. For example, if you believe that you can become successful in an area of life, experts usually advice that you look for champions to mentor you. In this wise, I attend seminars, I meet successful people and learn under them at the mentoring club that I belong, and I read books to produce strong feelings in my heart to have the conviction needed to deliver success in all areas of my life.
Idea #4: Change Your Vocabulary To Change Your Life
“One of the greatest discoveries you can make”, according to Anthony Robbins, “is the power you have to immediately change your experience at a moment’s notice simply by consciously selecting the words you use to describe the way you feel”. Bruce Springsteen and Carl Simon are two musicians who faced the same emotion of fear of the audience at the beginning of their career. While the latter is ruled by this emotion that prevented him from performing live for years, the latter considers it as “excitement”: a natural and positive part of his preparation to perform.
How we feel about anything is shaped by the meaning we attach to it. If you describe an event to yourself as a problem, you’ll feel different than if you describe it as a challenge. The words you choose to adopt determine the emotional pattern you go through. The reason why you show anger is because you still give the word recognition in your thoughts and your vocabulary.
One of the simplest yet most powerful tools for changing your life instantly is to change the words you constantly use to describe your feelings. When I encounter something which is unpleasant, I used to say, “Too bad” or “Poor me” based on how I feel, but now I’m learning to say, “That’s great”.
Many people are still unconsciously using such negative words like “poor”, “bad”, “stupid” and so on to describe their emotions without realizing the negative impact these disempowering words have on them. No one can grow beyond the words he uses to describe himself.
When negative words become part of our habitual words, they eventually shape the way we feel about our lives and our environment.
Sometimes ago, I was confessing to a group of people that by year 2025, Nigeria will become a Mecca to all nations of the world and immediately someone started laughing. Definitely, this person attaches negative words like, “difficult, “impossible” to interpret his experience and everything he relates with. Our beliefs, emotions, experience and the words we say have correlation, therefore, we must avoid using negative words and negative emotions to describe our experience. Remember, what you say is what you get and the words we attach to our experience become our experience.
As school children learn new words, I made a list of various positive words/emotions on a sheet of paper which I read every day; what you see is what you become. I carry the paper with me everywhere; it serves as weapon of defense for me in challenging situations when I have to glance over it to pick the particular emotion I want to adopt for the occasion. “A powerful agent is the right words … the resulting effect is physical as well as spiritual, and electrically prompt.” These were the words of Mark Twain; instead of scratching my brain for these “intensely right words”, I can have them in my pocket until they get settled in my heart.
Idea #5: Power of Metaphor
What will happen to your stress level if you consistently think about dealing with various challenges in terms of “climbing the ladder of success” rather than “struggling to keep the head above water”?
Positive metaphors can be used to change our perspective on any issue. Let us look at a positive metaphor on people, for example, “people are essential”; it can be used to create a new perception of what people really mean to you. You can create any positive metaphor to change your perception in which you become more effective and life becomes more enjoyable.
When you choose a different way to represent a challenge, you’ll automatically think, feel and respond to it in a brand new way. You have the power to choose the words to use in describing any situation, if you don’t like what you are seeing, you can look for an empowering metaphor to use. Changing the metaphor you use will change the way you deal with virtually anything.
We think in terms of pictures which create words, and in fact a picture creates more than a thousand words in our minds. Apart from what we hear and read, what we see create different words in our minds, unfortunately to average minds which constitute the majority, they can’t create empowering words for different things they see.
Today, unlike before, I don’t react normally to the abnormal news or words which I hear everywhere or the unpalatable events I encounter; now, I give those words and events an interpretation that is empowering in my mind.
Idea #6: The Power of Questions
“Successful people are those who have asked better questions and, as a result, gotten better answers” – Anthony Robbins.
If you allow your imagination to run wild, where might your questions lead you?
Thinking is nothing but the process of asking and answering questions.
Whether you want to evaluate, to imagine or to take decision, all these processes involve asking questions – How is that so? What is possible? What shall I do?
If you want to change the quality of your life, you must change what you habitually ask of yourself and others. Asking a question like, “Why me?” gets you disempowered, but if you ask yourself, “What is the purpose of this?” it leads you straight to the top of the situation.
It is true that, “All human progress is preceded by new questions.” New answers come from new questions. It is not only the questions you ask, but the questions you fail to ask that shape your destiny. The questions you ask can be used to change your values, your beliefs, your emotions, and consequently your life.
The question you ask can improve your finances, relationships, health, and personality. To change your condition and open yourself up to solutions when you face a challenge in any area of life, ask yourself these problem- solving questions:
1.) What is great about this problem?
2.) What is not perfect yet?
3.) What am I willing to do to make it the way I want it?
4.) What am I willing to no longer do in order to make it the way I want it?
5.) How can I enjoy the process while I do what is necessary to make the way I want it?
The questions we ask create scarcity or abundance, and they ultimately bring pain or gain.
Ask questions that will uplift your spirit and push you along the path of human excellence. In solving your health problems, you may ask, “What’s the food I can avoid?” or, “What do I stand to gain if I take this food?” While the first question puts you at the suffering and learning level due to its negative form, the second question is purposeful and challenges you to solve the problem because it invokes sense of gain or pleasure. No doubt, we are as good as the quality of the questions we ask.
Questions can get you going by using your power of imagination to see those things that had made you happy in the past. This act touches your emotions faster than repeating affirmations like “I’m happy, I’m happy, I’m happy” all day long.
Asking questions mean you want to receive answers, and it is a principle that if you ask you shall be given – if you open yourself to receive. There are resources out there which you can access if you know how to ask the right questions. To live purposefully, ask empowering questions that makes you reach your purpose.
Take a look at how your challenges in relationships will fare if you ask an empowering question like, “What else could be affecting this person, and how can I help?”
Your negative emotional pattern is equally broken if you ask yourself, “How can I use this situation to do better in the future?”
Idea #7: How to Handle Emotions
“You are the source of all your emotions. At any moment you can create or change them”, so says Anthony Robbins.
Negative emotions arise from the pain we feel, it is either the result of the way you’re looking at things or the result of what you’re doing.
For example, whenever someone does something that is painful, I feel angry because he had insulted me or I have not been appreciated, the emotion arose as a result of my perception that people must agree with my point of view. I may decide to take any of the following wrongs actions to deal with the limiting emotion:
– Ignoring the anger which can’t go away anyway.
– Suppressing the anger which will definitely come out in some other way.
– Indulging in the anger and feeling sorry for myself later when I see the consequence.
– Showing the anger without any remorse by competing with others, and by thinking, “If others have anger, it’s not out of place for me to have it more”.
It is worthy of note that all negative emotions are messengers, they are merely calls to action.
When I was a child, I felt angry and frustrated by the abuses which I received from our neighbors; the source of the anger is a feeling of hurt that I was not been able to deal with. I felt the anger because peace, that happened to be one of my important rules was violated by the people. The problem has to do with my perception that these people should live according to my personal principles and values. Therefore, it is my perception of expecting what they actually don’t have that makes me feel the negative emotions.
When I see these emotions as a messenger calling on me to improve myself, I am able to use them positively. Let us have a look at the emotions below and the messages they give:
Insecurity: Feeling of insecurity is a signal to you that you don’t believe you currently have the information, understanding, strategies or confidence you need for the task at hand. It gives a message that you need to gather additional resources to address your current situation.
Loneliness: Feeling of loneliness tells you that you need a connection with people; that you really care about them and love being with them. It’s calling you to reach out and connect with someone.
Resentment: A resentful person is someone whose aggression has translated to a more dangerous emotion. It is anger that is internalized.
Emptiness: Feeling of emptiness arises when you become overwhelmed as you think of all uncontrollable events which have happened to you. The message to you from this emotion is to start focusing on what you can control.
Guilt: Feeling of guilt tells you that you have violated one of your own rules. Its message is that you must immediately correct the situation and keep yourself from ever violating it again. Acknowledge the violation of rules which created it and get committed to avoiding the mistake by rehearsing how you’ll deal with the situation next time it shows up.
Disappointment: feeling of disappointment show that you have been expecting more than what you are giving. Disappointment is the painful feeling of being let down because your expectations had not been met; it comes from the erroneous belief that you’re going to miss out on something forever. It is a test of your patience and calls for a re-evaluation of what you really want; have a realistic approach to your expectations; leave the past and look ahead in hope.
Frustration: Someone who had not been able to handle effectively his or her feelings of disappointment will become frustrated on the long run. The message from this emotion is that you are in a greater mess. You believe that something you’re doing could be done better, that you could be getting a greater result but things are not working fine. It is a call to action telling you to change your approach and you can still achieve what you want.
Aggression: It comes from a feeling of hurt that had not been dealt with, a refusal to kill the monster when it is little. Aggression comes when you feel that one of your important standards, or rules, has been violated either by yourself or someone else. The feeling is a result of your misinterpretation because the person you believe has “broken your rules” may not even know that he or she had broken them because you have not communicated the rules to them before. And what makes you think that your own rules are the best?
The message to you is to change your perception because you may be judging the situation hastily or harshly. You can handle aggression by suggesting it to yourself that the “offender” does not mean to hurt you or you can go to the person to communicate your feelings and rules.
The best time to handle a negative emotion is when you first begin to feel it; otherwise, it becomes too difficult to deal with once it’s full-blown, learn to always “kill the monster while it’s little”.
Now, when I start feeling uncomfortable, I know it is sending me a signal that something is wrong. I quickly find out whether the feeling comes from my perception of the situation or my wrong actions. Whenever I fail to deal with situations that are making me uncomfortable, it leads to fear- another message that tells me to be prepared for worse signals.
3. How will these ideas help you in a practical way, both in your daily personal life and in helping you to create a better world? If so, how?
* Commitment to my true values is the foundation upon which success in my personal life is built and a better world is created when I share these values with others.
*Success is interplay of pain and pleasure, what seems like pain is actually a messenger telling me to act concerning my finance, relationships, health, and my personality. Once I begin to handle pain from all areas of my life positively, I will start to live positively and this will reflect in my attitude to others in the world.
*There are so much limiting beliefs that had been unconsciously embedded in my heart right from childhood most of which are destructive. I have to create empowering beliefs in every area of my life to override all my wrong beliefs. Then, I will become a better person who can reproduce better people around me.
*There are some wrong words I use freely when I am in a bad state, as long as I use these words, such situations keep coming my way; but once I decided to take them out of my vocabulary the words stopped having any meaning to me. When I start using positive words I have started enjoying positive feelings and people get inspired by my actions.
*My words cannot change people, only my attitude can change another person’s attitude, and one of the ways of developing a good attitude is to improve the quality of the questions I ask myself. I ask questions which take me to purpose level rather than disempowering questions which put me at suffering level or learning level. By the time I have the right attitude; I shall have the emotional strength and active conscience to contribute to the world.
*Emotions are powerful, they form the passion needed to carry out one’s vision. For every action that I take, I am either ruled by emotion of pain or emotion of pleasure; my knowledge, understanding, and usage of this twin-emotion determine how I can create positive emotions and passion for success.
I cannot contribute to the world if I am not in my natural state of being: peace of mind. I give priority to worthwhile values which lead to positive emotions in order to have peace of mind in a world where majority of people pursue means values (money, cars, children, marriage, etc.)
4. Quotes: Are there brief quotes from the book which really got your attention? If so, please list and comment on them.
“Words can produce illness; words can kill. Therefore, wise physicians are very careful about the way they communicate” -Dr. Norman Cousins
We do a lot of damage to ourselves by the labels we attach to some things, for example, people use to refer to some sicknesses as “killer diseases”. If patients are freed of emotions of fear and depression produced by such words, medication works faster and the immune system often experiences an immediate boost. Nothing kills faster than a damaged immune system. Wise men and women choose the appropriate words they use to describe their health. A person says “I have headache” and another says” I feel headache”. Is there any difference between the two statements? I bet there is.
“Who you become as a person is the ultimate reward of goals being pursued”.
Personal development takes place in the process of pursuing goals leading to better character traits, improved skills, empowering beliefs, great attitudes and new abilities.
Seeing improvements in your personality as you move daily towards achieving your goals creates joy inside you that is translated to happiness outside you for all to see. It is not until you achieve all your goals perfectly that you can start enjoying life. A balanced life is lived when you continuously have something worthwhile to live for beyond material things. As Anthony Robbins puts is, “We all need a continued sense of emotional and spiritual growth; it is the food on which our souls thrive”. Many times I’ve lamented, “Is that all there is?” when I see the material things I strived to obtain, but the experience I gained while trying to achieve the material goals is usually invaluable.
“The only limit to what you can achieve is the extent of your ability to define with precision that which you desire.”
Your desire is invisible, but it can become a reality through your ability to see or imagine it clearly in your mind before you hold it in your hand. What you have in your hand now had first of all been in your mind; anything you have in your hand today which you don’t have the power to imagine or hold in your mind may end up being lost unconsciously.
“Success is the result of good judgment, good judgment is the result of experience, and experience is often the result of bad judgment!” Anonymous
Success usually does not come without experience laden with mistakes or bad judgments. Mistakes serve as the learning process to do things right the next time; one can be permitted to make bad judgment over an issue for the first time, it only becomes a disaster if the mistake keeps repeating itself.
“The secret of unleashing your true power is setting goals that are exciting enough that they truly inspire your creativity and ignite your passion”.
Consciously choosing goals that are worth pursing ignites the fire within you to reveal your true potential. Once you identify your worthy goals, you’ll begin to recognize all information and opportunities that are in line with your dream: an in- built gift that is made possible through the Reticular Articulating System (RAS) in your subconscious mind.
“Whatever you consistently think about and focus upon, you move toward”
What you often think about goes to your subconscious mind or heart and what enters your heart has entered your life. The mind can see things, it can hear words, and it can imagine pictures which forms a powerful tool to program the subconscious mind or Reticular Articulating System for success. The reason why set-goals are achieved is that, the more you review your written down goals and see those pictures clearly in your mind, the more you condition the mind to see what you desire and the closer you have them in your hand. I deliberately surround myself with pictures of the kind of life I want to live in future, and have my written goals on paper where I can see them every day.
“The only thing that limits your questions is your belief about what is possible”
If you put a limit to what you think is possible, you’ll have put a limit to the quality of questions that you ask. It is natural that if you don’t ask any question, you must not expect any answer. To be innovative is to believe that nothing is impossible and to ask questions which make you think out of the box.
“If you delay taking action, you only create more pain for yourself later on’.
Procrastination is what common people do to avoid pain. People don’t take action due to the pain they have linked to it and the pleasure they are having in indulging in their negative habits. However, if you begin to quantify the cost of continuing in the negative habit as a result of your inaction, you will see that it is wiser to change your bad habits now than later.
“Learning is the process of creating a relationship between something you already understand and something new”
If you teach a man any new thing he will never learn unless he has something inside that makes him understand it. In case he has nothing inside him, the new knowledge has nothing to relate with- it is the reason why acquisition of knowledge is gradual and one step at a time.
Complex problems in mathematics and great discoveries are made by starting from the known to the unknown. Something you understand easily leads you to know something you don’t understand.
“If you trust in the cycle of the seasons, you know that in the long term you will reap the harvest you have sown”
The fact that you are not seeing immediate results doesn’t mean you’re not making progress. The stone cutter uses the above metaphor to develop power of persistence; he strikes the rock persistently for hundreds or perhaps thousands of time until it splits. You can apply the above metaphor to all the areas of your life in order to succeed and win in any relationship; to improve your health; and to develop a good personality.
“The same kind of thinking that has brought us to where we are will not get us where we want to go”
Where you want to go is higher than where you are at the moment, so you need a higher level of thinking. The thoughts that had brought you so far may not take you further. Change is our greatest ally, yet we disparage it by resting on our present achievements which may soon become monuments if we refuse to embrace change in our personal and professional life. Thinking deep each day produces change and addresses challenges, otherwise, we will be left behind. “The significant problems we have,” Albert Einstein stated, “cannot be solved at the same level of thinking with which we created them.”
“The truth is what you get will not make you feel good, but learning how to change your state of mind in an instant will”
We have a load of challenges in all areas of life to get us depressed and feel bad, but it is left to each of us to make ourselves happy.
What you focus determines what you feel or your emotional state which in turn affects your actions and interactions. According to Anthony Robbins, there are two secrets for changing your emotional state instantly. The first is to shift your mental focus by thinking of one of the most treasured memories of your life, you can use the power of imagination to create any scene that’ll make you feel good and empower you or by asking yourself the right questions .The second is to use your physical body, or your physiology; what you do to your body is directly related to how you feel. When you laugh, clap you hand, raise your shoulders, lift your head, and breathe fully, you feel happy.
If you keep focusing on what makes you feel good or bad, that’s exactly where you’ll end up. Wise men and women are able to talk boldly, feel great, and accomplish more than their abilities by choosing what they want to feel in their hearts before allowing the conscious mind to think about what they get.
One of my brothers sent an electronic message to me on the story of the wise old man which can help us to understand the importance of the above quotation by Anthony Robbins:
A man of 92 years, short, very well presented, who takes great care in his appearance, is moving into an old people’s home.
His wife of 70 has recently died, and he is obliged to leave his home.
After waiting several hours in the retirement home lobby, he gently smiles as he is told that his room is ready.
As he slowly walks to the elevator, using his cane, I described his small room to him, including the sheet at the window which serves as curtain.
– “I like it very much”, he says, with the enthusiasm of an 8 year old boy who has just been given a new puppy.
– – “M. Gagne, you haven’t even seen the room yet, hang on a moment, we are almost there”
– “That has nothing to do with it, he replies.
– “Happiness is something I choose in advance. Whether or not I like the room does not depend on the furniture, or the décor- rather it depends on how I decide to see it.”
– “It is already decided in my mind that I like the room. It a decision I take every morning when I wake up”
– “I can choose. I can spend my day in bed enumerating all the difficulties that I have with the parts of my body that no longer work very well or I can get up and give thanks to heaven for those parts that are still in working order.”
– Every day is a gift, and as long as I can open my eyes, I will focus on the new day, and all the happy memories that I have built up during my life”
– “Old age is like a bank account. You withdraw in later life what you have deposited along the way”
“Some of the simplest things can make the biggest difference”
One example of a simple thing that can make the biggest difference is laughter. In the Eastern part of the world; it is being used as therapy to cure ailments. Anyone can feel good for no reason at all by laughing in front of the mirror; it sparks the nervous system to generate feelings of happiness. Laughter can make you have control over any stressful situation that you find yourself.
I had been part of the people who see life as not a joke, I take everything around me too seriously, and unfortunately the world is full of events that never make one happy. No wonder the world is full of people who are unhappy with their lives. Man keeps looking for things that will make him happy; however, knowledge had made me realize that such expectation is illusory. Instead of looking for events that will make me happy, I make myself happy by laughing from my heart rather than getting depressed, I do this simple thing in my privacy so that people may not think I am bananas. This simple act gives me emotional stability. When I lose control of events around me or misbehave, my error comes from my inability to remember to do this simple thing, and candidly I often forget, and I pay for it anyway.
A long time ago I heard a horticulturist on the radio discuss about how he talks to his plants every morning and how he receives mental and emotional stability from this daily action.
There are other simple things we deride but can make a lot of difference in our lives; instead of writing them off as being simple, appreciate and work on them; nature usually hide great things in simple things that we fail to recognize.
It is noteworthy that great people are really simple in character than what most of us expect; of course, “Empty barrels” the adage says, “makes the loudest noise.” The simple things that a few exemplary ones do which the majority of people refuse to do make the big difference in their relationships, finance, health, and character: Sending text messages to loved ones, putting away little sums of money consistently over a long period, taking plenty of water, and determining to let go of bad emotions like anger, worry, and so on.
“Nothing splendid has ever been achieved except by those who dared believe that something inside of them was superior to circumstance” Bruce Barton
The values, principles and the rules you follow determine how people see you. We all respect men and women who take a stand for what they believe, even if we don’t agree with their ideas about what’s right or wrong. Nelson Mandela is admired because he lives according to the values and standards he professes; he wields a lot of influence because he demonstrates what he stands for.
It is better to stand for a value that is permanent and fulfilling [love, joy, peace, hope] than temporal values or means values [marriage, children, money, certificates, position] that do not lead to the fulfillment you truly deserve. Mandela and other great men know the difference between end values and means values; they look beyond the means values to hold on to end values which give fulfillment.
Don’t pursue means value but end value; if you pursue relationship [a means value], you will not be fulfilled unless you pursue love- the end value of relationship. If you think having children is your goal alone instead of pursuing joy as your marriage’s driving emotional need, you may end up less fulfilled; but if you pursue joy, when children do not come on time you’ll not lose your emotional balance.
The decisions you make depend on your values; therefore, decision -making is nothing but values clarification. You are as happy as you decide to be, if you still nurture the limiting belief and guided by rules that when you have some material goals or means values you’ll be happy, unfortunately, none of these can make you happy. This is why many people have more ways to feel bad, and only a few ways to feel good, and it shows in the terrible ways people behave.
Anthony Robbins said, “If you’re going to have a rule for happiness, make it this: “Nothing has to happen for me to feel good! I feel good because I’m alive! Life is a gift, and I revel in it”.
5. Is there anything in the book that you do not understand or are unclear about, or are there ideas which you disagree with and if so, why?
There is nothing in the book that I am not clear about and no idea that I disagree with.
6. Did the book contain exercises for the reader to complete? If so, did you complete all of the exercises and did you find them helpful?
The book contained various exercises for the reader to complete which were done. They were practical exercises which helped me to relate better with the knowledge being acquired from the book.
7. Is there anything you read in the book you would like to comment on that was not covered in the previous questions? If so, please comment.
The Power of Identity
In the ancient Greece, the Spartans used to attack and oppress the Athenians at will. One day, the later consulted their god to find a solution to the problem. The reply that it gave them after many entreaties was, “know thyself”. A meeting was summoned to find out the meaning of the message from the god. Upon much deliberation, the philosophers concluded that each person should go home to identify a particular skill or ability that he can manifest to assist the city in overcoming the Spartans. Soon, weapons of warfare were skillfully made, innovative arts of warfare were fashioned, and everybody developed one skill or the other to defend the city of Athens. By the time the Spartans came back again, the Athenians faced them with more courage and confidence; of course, the enemies were defeated while the ceaseless oppression was abated.
From the above story, it is clear that your belief about who you are shapes you life and determines what you consider possible or impossible, what you accept or reject, how you think, and what you do or the decisions you make. Success is simply who you are. To do something you have not done before, you need to become something you have not been before.
The Athenians in the above story had a way of defining themselves before they changed that definition; of course, their lives, the talents they expressed, the behaviours they demonstrated, and the aspirations they pursued, all changed instantly.
The limiting belief the Athenians had about their identity had wrecked much havoc against them until they created a new awareness. They could have chosen their former wrong identity consciously; or it may be the sum total of what they’ve heard from people, or other things that happened in previous generations. One thing is certain; our past does not determine our present or future if we allow a new, empowering identity to become our belief as a nation or as individuals. Challenges will come to test the new identity just as the Athenians should not expect that they will not be attacked again by the Spartans. The issue is that one’s identity must keep expanding to meet up the challenges which can’t be stopped from coming. As long as the Athenians expanded their identity to that of a powerful nation, so long they never considered defeat as an option.
Each of us needs a broad sense of who we are so that our identities can never be threatened. We’ll encounter identity crisis if we are limited by our physical identities alone: age, race, job, tribe, stature and so on. Who thought that Barack Obama, an African-American can become the president of USA? Obama acted consistently with his identity on who he believes he is and did not question his abilities.
Those who do not stop linking their identities to their physical definitions will definitely experience pain because physical attributes will sooner or later change. Don’t look at things which can be seen because they are temporal but things which cannot be seen are permanent. You are more than your physical body; your identity should be defined beyond your physical attributes, that is, your mental, emotional and spiritual attributes. What makes you unique is beyond what people see physically in you.
If you expand your identity, your life will expand. To expand your identity and your life, you must consciously decide who you want to be beyond your professional life and physical achievements. Something that will affect the lives of millions of people all over the world: a reformist president like Abraham Lincoln, a generous billionaire like Bill Gates, or a nurse like Mother Theresa. What do you want your name to conjure in people’s mind when it is mentioned?
To expand your identity, check your values, emotions, beliefs, references, and the quality of the questions you ask, all these determine what you stand for and who you are. Personally, I look for books to read to improve my identity and luckily I belong to a mentoring group, the 100/10 Academy in Abeokuta, Nigeria, where we receive these knowledge from our mentor, Dr. Abib Olamitoye once in a month.
* To expand your identity, association has a lot to do with your perception of who you are; pay attention to the people you listen to and surround yourself with. People who don’t know their identity cannot expand yours; they can’t be blamed for tearing down other people’s identity, so run away from such people.
* Talk to yourself and the people around you based on your new identity, what you say repeatedly about yourself becomes you label.
* Begin to act based on your new identity. If you know a person who has similar identity, start acting like the person, let him/her be your role model. You will always become the kind of person you emulate.
Creating A Lasting Change
George Bemard Shaw said, “Progress is impossible without change”. Only fools and dead men don’t change when it is absolutely necessary, fools wont, and dead men can’t.
What is the sensation you link to a particular experience in your nervous system? Altering the sensation we feel for doing something makes change happen. As long as reading gives you feeling of pleasure, you’ll be drawn to the habit; it’s only when you link reading with pain in your mind that change to a poor reading habit becomes inevitable. You may understand that reading is helpful but you still don’t read because man is not driven by what he knows, but instead by what he has learnt to link pain and pleasure to in his nervous system.
To create a lasting change, these points must be noted:
* Decide what you really want and honestly determine what’s preventing you from having it now.
What hinders you from creating a lasting change is the secondary benefit you derive from the habit you want to change. You don’t want to start reading books because you still enjoy laziness or loafing. Make what you want a goal, not what you don’t want; your goal is, “to be more knowledgeable and valuable”; it is not, “to stop lazing around”. Focus on where you are going, not where you are leaving. Ignorantly, most people focus on what they don’t want instead of focusing on what they want. To create a change, focus on the positive you want than the negative you want to leave behind.
* Find strong enough reasons to make change a must.
Push yourself to the turning point on the need to change. Find out what your inability to change had cost you in past, what it costs you now, and what it will cost you in future in terms of your finances, your health, your relationships and your personality, if you refuse to change. Now, imagine the benefits that you will derive in all these areas if you decide to change now. This creates the leverage you need to make a change. Making your commitment known to people who can take you up if you fail can also provide leverage to change.
* Interrupt the bad habit.
My experience has formed unconscious patterns shaping me in all areas of life. A pattern is formed when an emotion or behavior is repeated over and over again. Through overuse, I’ve trained myself to fly off the handle and engage in all sorts of negative emotions. Fortunately, I can equally train myself to feel happy, excited or grateful by interrupting my old habit and replacing it with a good one that I’ve identified.
To create a new pattern of thinking, feeling, or behaving, you must first interrupt the old pattern. I remembered listening to one of my mentors on how he stopped the habit of eating meat based on health-advice from his doctor. When he is served meat at home, he would chew three bites and spit them out until his mind was conditioned to reject the habit totally. There are different withdrawal rates for different individuals; hence, the number of bites, and period of conditioning in your own case may vary.
* Create a new empowering alternative.
According to Anthony Robbins, “Most people’s attempts at change are only temporary because they fail to find an alternative way of getting out of pain and into pleasure.”
To create a lasting change, you must replace the old habit with a new habit that gives you as much pleasure as the old habit. “Old habit” people say, “die hard”, it can’t be eliminated suddenly, and it takes as much time as it took you to pick the bad habit up before you can drop it.
Condition the new habit until it is consistent.
You wouldn’t stop eating meat just for one month and proclaim yourself a vegetarian.
We can make any behavior to become permanent if we do it with enough repetition and emotional intensity. Any thought, feeling, or behavior that is consistently repeated will become a habit and failure to repeat them leads to their eventual dissipation.
Test the new habit you’ve chosen to replace the old habit.
Assuming that your old habit is sitting in front of TV all day and your desired new habit is reading.
a) Do you have intense pain immediately you think of watching TV all day long?
b) Do you feel pleasure instead of pain when you think of reading?
c) Is reading books consistent with your goals, your beliefs and your life philosophy?
d) Do the benefits you derive from reading measure up to the pleasure you used to get from watching TV all day?
e) If you are faced with the temptation of watching TV, will you be able to control yourself?
Identify the little things that you need to change so as to live a fulfilled life, remember that little things make for excellence; some of the smallest and negligible things can make the biggest difference.
Power of References
You have the power to choose whatever you want as your life’s driving emotional need, this is one thing over which you have absolute control – yourself. You can make any experience enriching whether good or bad, it depends on the away you look at it: your intelligence, flexibility and creativity. If you come up with anything that seems to have had negative consequences, you have the power to immediately re-interpret it with your intelligence, flexibility and creativity. There is always a benefit in all human experience irrespective of how it presents itself.
The heart or the subconscious mind can’t distinguish between real and imaginary experiences. If you imagine success repeatedly and work towards it, you’ll get what you want through the imaginary success you created in your mind. Anthony Robbins said, “Always remember that you are not limited to your actual experience: your imagination has unlimited references to support you”
What you see is what you get. You can expand your references or experiences by creating and seeing pictures of what you desire through reading books, traveling, and listening to empowering words. You can’t have a limited experience and expect a broad mind: new worlds open up for you when you consciously seek for new experiences. Reading books makes the experience of the author become your own as you interact with him or her in their books.
“Your imagination is ten times more potent than your will-power. Unleashed, it provides a sense of certainty and tenacious vision that goes far beyond any limitations of the past.” These words by Anthony Robbins are clearly explained by the following incident:
For many years, no one believed that one mile can be covered under four minutes; there was no reference to prove otherwise. One day, Roger Bannister provided a reference by achieving the feat in 1954, and immediately after this, the record was broken 37 times by 37 runners within a year. The next year, there were enough references for 300 other runners to do the same thing.
Your References Determine Your Uniqueness
“New references”, according to Anthony Robbins, “provide the fabric for new beliefs and identities”. One of the sources of your uniqueness is your experiences or references.
Our conscious and subconscious minds are loaded with information that were tucked away on what we have seen, heard, touched, tasted or smelled since we started using our five sense organs. These references determine our beliefs about who we are and what we’re capable of.
In situations where these experiences are unpalatable, they constitute emotional wounds in our minds which lead to poor self-image. Fortunately for us, if we don’t like what we have gone through in form of experience in the past, we can change the meaning we attach to them. You hold your destiny in your hand and have the power to ordain it by the quality of your reference experience or memories.
One of the experiences that shaped my life is the treatment that my family received from our hostile neighbor while I was growing up in a rented apartment. I made up my mind that early stage of my life not to bring up my children under such condition- a reference that made me more diligent in order to change my family’s condition.
Another important experience is the one I gained through my project supervisor in my final year at the university who was not there when I needed him. I decided to use this experience in a positive way as much as possible by being a helper in my own little way to those who are in need.
I’ve also had accidents and sicknesses which have made me realize that the line between life and death is thin. These references have made me see service as one of my topmost values.
Each of the above experiences gave me new resolutions, new answers that caused me to grow and increase my ability to serve well, love all, and live well.
To create new references, pursue some experiences you’ve never had before: Go to places you’ve never visited before, visit the orphanage, and see the world through someone else’s eyes. Doing something unusual and new will expand your references; any limitation you have in your life are probably the outcome of your limited reference experiences. I can remember that when I began to visit schools to give talks on self-development, my experiences started to grow in my relationships and personality.
Parameter Of Real Success: Personality
To taste true success, you must think of ways of having good personality or becoming a role model; to demonstrate the right values and what is possible. Everyone can make an impact by doing the smallest things and making what often seem like insignificant decisions. Small efforts can add up to giant results. Small decisions and actions, consistently made, have far reaching effects, so none of us have any excuse for not doing anything to heal the world or make any impact.
What are your true values? High level of commitment to your true values and the way you exercise your conscience create a new personality that can make a difference in the world. We have all been naturally endowed with the gifts needed to take action against the challenges in the world today in terms of wrong human behaviour bedeviling us. There are people who have sacrificed their time and efforts with passion to actualize their dreams of a new order in the world. The difference between them and others is in the way they exercise their minds, hearts, and conscience: the natural gifts which are equally given to all human beings.
Someone said,” The capacity to do the right thing, to dare, to take a stand and make a difference, is within you now.” Good personality is developed when a man gets to the turning point, or his defining moment; when he decides to contribute under even the most trying circumstances. He begins to act selflessly and demands more from himself than others would expect. A Nelson Mandela defies adversities by doing what he or she believes is right in spite of inconveniences.
Good personality is not about being perfect but being humane, holding oneself to a higher standard and having the integrity to live as such. It is about being honest with yourself and holding yourself responsible for your success or failure to develop your true values.
To develop good personalities, we must stop believing that the challenges facing us are permanent and pervasive; or think that one person’s actions can’t change things. If Mahatma Gandhi, Mother Theresa, or Nelson Mandela had such idea in mind, they would not have single-handedly made the difference in their various ways.
A good personality enjoys true fulfillment, only those who have learned the power of sincere and selfless contribution will experience this life’s deepest joy. Inner joy leads to good emotional state, it sets smiles and genuine compliments in motion, and these are things that put smiles in other people’s faces which consequently enhance one’s personality. Remember, if you don’t have joy, love, hope and other true values or end values, you cannot share it with others, anyone who is prone to wrong emotions such as fear of rejection, frustration, aggression ,and so on can’t show good personality.
Good personalities appreciate the expectancy, anticipation, and suspense which make life a game. Of course, life itself will be boring if you know in advance what is going to happen.
Personality & Personal Rules
Your personality is also defined by your personal rules. Setting unrealistic rules for yourself won’t make you be in good emotional state, and this affects your character or personality.
It is left for each of us to examine our personal rules to ensure that they are appropriate because they ultimately determine our feelings. Our goals of success are not complete if we don’t have rules (emotional goals) that allow us to be happy whenever we want.
A person who has rules that doesn’t depend on people’s behavior before being happy will become influential and win in the game of life. If you feel good only when everything happens exactly as anticipated, and feel bad when anything else occurs, no matter what you have achieved, true success is not yet in your hand.
Your Rules Affect Your Relationships
Anthony Robbins said, “Every upset you’ve ever had with another human being has been a rules upset. You weren’t upset with the person; you were upset that he or she violated one your rules, one of your standards or beliefs about how things must or should be”.
My work as a project supervisor demands that I look for details in projects being executed. Unconsciously, I carried the metaphor of my work and the rules that comes with it to my personal life. I used to seek for perfection from people, but now I’ve discovered that this personal rule is inappropriate and self-centered in my relationships. I am happy to discover that this had been the major cause of my wrong emotions of anger depression, and so on. My wife, children, co-workers, and so on need not perform according to my expectations before I decide to feel good. Now, I consciously know that if my topmost value is love, I must create new rules to reflect my new personality: To love irrespective of people’s behaviors or any condition I find myself.
You have relationships with others based on your unconscious and unwritten rules on how people should behave. It is revealing to know that your outer self also relates with your inner self based on your unwritten rules on how you should behave. Fear, anger, depression, disappointment and other negative attitudes show up when any of your rules are violated by people or by yourself for how you should behave. Only a few people who have the awareness are not inside this circle.
When you get upset with yourself or someone, you are only reacting to the violation of your rules for the particular event. If you have not clearly communicated the rules, you are merely expecting them to know what they are. Why should you expect people to live by your rules if you are not willing to compromise and live by some of theirs? If anyone goes against your rules whether you have made them known or not, open a line communication.
Avoid having too many rules, it is worthy of note that the fewer rules you have in your relationship; the happier you’ll be.
Your Rules Affect Your Decisions
You rules make you stand by your decision. If you have a rule that says, “I must not take alcohol”, you are likely going to abide by the rule than when you say, “I should not take alcohol”.
Decision to feel confident depends on your rules on confidence.
Decision to feel successful depends on your rules on success.
Decision to feel loved depends on your rules on love.
Parameter Of Real Success: Finance
All the problems in life will not disappear if you have all the money in the world yet having financial freedom offers more opportunities to grow, share and create value for yourself and others.
Take control of your financial future by transforming all your beliefs about money to empower you. Many people don’t have financial mastery due to their limiting beliefs which include:
– Making money require working too hard.
– Too much money can cause corruption.
– Anyone who is rich has taken advantage of others.
– Making money is a complex process.
Keys to financial mastery:
– Create wealth by increasing the value of what you do by at least ten to fifteen times more than you currently do. Find ways of adding value to your business or employer whether you are paid or not for it.
– Maintain your wealth by spending less than you earn, and invest the difference. At least 10 percent of what you earn must be invested.
– Increase your wealth by re-investing your returns for compounded growth.
– Protect your wealth by avoiding being a “target” of predators; get a good mentor or coach to make intelligent investment decisions.
– Enjoy your wealth by rewarding yourself occasionally. Link pleasure to creating value and earning money.
– Create sense of wealth or abundance by giving away a portion of what you earn. You create emotion of abundance and true wealth by contributing to worthy causes in proportion to your income. This generates emotion of joy.
Learned Helplessness
When problems arise, the three perceptions below can lead to learned helplessness according to Dr. Martin Seligman:
1. A belief that the problem is permanent [rather than temporary]
2. A belief that the problem is pervasive [instead affecting only one area]
3. A belief that the problem is personal, thinking that something is wrong with you [rather than an opportunity to learn]
How we deal with adversity shapes our lives more than almost anything else. To avoid learned helplessness, the first perception that a problem is permanent must not be entertained. Achievers see problems as transitory, while those who fail usually see even the smallest problem as everlasting. If life itself is a temporary assignment, then problem in it can never be permanent unless you refuse to persist.
On the second perception, Anthony Robbins said, “To overcome the false belief that a problem is all-encompassing, you must take control of some part of it immediately.” You may have challenges in your finance; it does not mean you have to see yourself as a failure in other areas of life except you fail to act now in those areas that need attention.
Pertaining to the third perception, avoid at all costs the belief that any problem is “personal”. No problem is personal unless you are not willing to see it as a learning experience. Don’t tie your identity closely to the problem unless you want to become overwhelmed by it.
To overcome learned helplessness, you have to change your perception or beliefs to new empowering ones; if the old beliefs don’t go, new beliefs will not take root. It is pertinent to examine your beliefs at the moment and find out how they’ve helped you so far.
Rating
Please rate the following questions on a scale from 1 to 10. Ten is good and one is poor.
A. How interesting was it to read? 9
B. How helpful were the contents? 9
C. How easy was it to understand? 9
D. Would you recommend it to others? 10
E. What is the overall rating you would give it? 9
The New Dynamics Of Winning
Assessment by Ayoade Anthony (Nigeria)
1. What is the main idea that the author is trying to convey in the book?
The main idea is about getting to the zone where one can do more than he or she or anyone else thought possible through mental training to acquire the mindset of a champion.
2. What were the seven ideas which were personally most important to you and why? List these seven ideas followed by an explanation after each one as to why it was important to you. Use personal examples from your own life.
i) The desire to succeed is a basic requirement for winning.
It comes from inner self and it is usually called motivation or motive in action. Your motives are your inner desires which give you passion to perform at your peak because you have “fire in the belly” according to Lee Iacocca.
Success is 10% talent and 90% guts and determination or mental fortitude which comes as a result of commitment, and one’s ability to block distractions and negative influences.
The road block to the zone of performance has four types of fear: fear of disaster, fear of change, fear of success, and fear of failure or rejection.
I used to face this fear one way or the other, but once I am able to create strong desire in my heart to succeed, the fear subsides. I wrote the ten self-affirming beliefs in this book down on a paper which I carry with me everywhere I go; I read them whenever any sort of fear wants to manifest in my daily activities.
ii) Winners pay the price of success in full privately.
The question is how much you “want it” more than others, what price you are willing to pay and how much pleasure you are willing to delay.
Paying the price means going through the process to attain top-level results. Putting in the time and efforts required despite all limitations and challenges. Unfortunately, most of our hurdles in life are self-imposed limitations that can be overcome if we never, ever give up on ourselves. Remember, if you fail to pay the price privately, you’ll never get the prize publicly.
Reading books in an environment which lacks basic infrastructures like electricity requires a lot of sacrifice; I have to contend with other pressing demands in other areas of my life. Ensuring that these do not constitute stumbling blocks in achieving my goals is the price I have to pay.
iii) To have a winning mind-set, one must encounter the moment of truth.
If you have not had your moment of truth, you can’t make the commitment to follow and finish the process.
To become a different person, you can’t keep doing the same thing you have been doing. The moment of truth is when an event altered the course of your life forever. This is the point where you find your purpose and make up your mind to follow and finish the process with total commitment to win.
My moment of truth had been the day I was called from the crowd at a seminar to give my personal mission statement. And the word that came to my mind is “to empower people with all my resources.” Those words were not so clear to me on that day but they have been pointing the way for me towards the achievement of my goals. Stories of individuals who became winners revealed that each of them had a moment of truth. For one of my mentors, Dr. Abib Olamitoye, it happened when he read a book, “Think and Grow Rich”. In fact, reading books is a powerful way for people to encounter their turning points; and I give kudos to the International Institute for Global Leadership for the life-changing books they give to their students all over the world to read.
iv) Winning starts from inside. What you have is what you give; what you had become inside is what you will show outside. Your own sense of value or how you feel in your inside determines the quality of your performance. What you call yourself based on your performance is what people will call you.
Please yourself with your performance before you try to please people outside; don’t try to impress the outer world than your inner world. This is the reliable path to being impressive.
Your end values are your internal possessions – love, peace, joy etc. and your means values are your external possessions – money, houses, marriage, certificates, etc.
Winners have fundamental belief in their internal possessions than their external possessions, so they are not subject to worries, anxieties, frustration, and so on.
You can never taste true success if your idea of winning depends only upon means values or impressing the world. No one can impress the world; your colleagues who cheered you for an accomplishment will probably not cheer as loudly the next time.
What no one can see, no one can take away from you; therefore, it is wiser to base one’s life on end values.
Some physical circumstances may be beyond our control, for example, our background or physical challenges, but all human beings are born as champions with a heart that can hold abundance of good values.
We must avoid wrong perception and bad response to challenges; such attitudes turn champions to losers. The most powerful value that makes one become a winner is to create love in the inside; doing everything because you love, not for any means value. In the end the means values will automatically come.
v) The values you live by are going to shape the future for you and those around you.
Are your actions consistent with what you say?
The desire for something beyond materialism builds strength of character: The desire to make a difference, to set good examples, to follow personal principles despite external pressures.
Examine yourself critically at least once a week. Map a journey of your daily activities and ask yourself whether you are proud to present the records for people to see. Many great men and women had fallen from grace to grass for failing to examine their own lives.
When you promise something, do people believe it will really happen, or is there a question of whether you really mean it? Integrity implies an understanding that people can trust you to do what you say you’ll do.
Leadership integrity means looking up to those beneath you, not looking down on those you feel are beneath you. I have about 50 people who are working directly under me; I rely on the critical reports they give me about my performances, and find it more painful to offend them than my bosses.
vi) You must see victory before you can have it.
If you can see the invisible, you can do the impossible. A winner plans the details of how to win in his mind; he sees the act of winning clearly in advance. When you close your eyes, you can create imaginations, the images and thoughts take you beyond the limits of space and time.
The imaginations you create in your mind can actually cause things to happen in the physical world. The reason why goal-setting works is that if you see something in your mind’s eye, and you imagine it over and over again, you’ll begin to believe it is really there in substance. Consequently, your actions, both physical and mental, will move to bring about in reality the images you are visualizing.
However, before you can use your imagination effectively, you need to relax your mind and your body. Relaxing the mind will quiet the logical and judgmental left brain, and gives the innovative right brain the freedom it requires to think out of the box. Relaxing the body puts you in touch with your body’s inner world, without distraction.
Relax your mind by making a list of things that’s causing you to feel pressured. The list should be updated regularly and, needless to say it should be “for your eyes only”
Try to identify the items on the list over which you have direct control, and which you can eliminate by a clearly defined action or series of action. Remove the items that you’ve been able to follow through on one of your solutions.
Create a sub list of the items you can’t yet bring under control. On these you now know that you have to change for the better inside you, and develop in your ability to accept the unavoidable and make the best of it.
When I relax my mind through constant meditation, it relaxes my body. I use all my sense organs to recreate in my mind the beauty of all creations in the universe; this sense of appreciation changes my inner world for the better, develops my inner power, and strengthens my visualization capability.
vii) Passion for living is important to live a long life.
Champions have an excitement about being alive; they have passion for life and work. Each day on earth is a gift of God, those who have had a close encounter with death understands this better. The sage said, “Teach us to number our days, that we may apply our heart unto wisdom”.
Champions see life, including their work as a game to be enjoyed.
My passion for living comes from my desire to serve greatly, to live well, and to love well, rather than self-aggrandizement. I do this by organizing free seminars for people to share with them what I learn, and to contribute positively to their lives. I know that one can never arrive in the journey; rather, one can only become better and create more for the good of others. Such an attitude will definitely create the peace I need for a long life, and improve my relationship with people.
3. How will these ideas or lessons help you in a practical way, both in your daily personal life and in helping you to create a better world? If so, how?
The world is a dynamic environment that is constantly changing, challenging, and complex; but there are opportunities in it for those who can see them. The ideas in this book are helpful in improving my performance at home and at work. With my knowledge on integrity, I can improve my relationships; power of visualization can be utilized to improve my finances, my health, and my personality. When I become a better person, I can then make others live a purposeful life through my contributions.
Writing happens to be my hobby; this is a tool that I will continue to use to spread the lessons I gain from the books I read to all and sundry.
This book had assisted me more in getting committed to developing a values-centered leadership life, and doing everything I can for the people to get my real values. At home, I expose these ideas to my immediate family in our daily devotions to break their chain of ignorance, and turn them to real leaders and winners.
Every opportunity I have to discuss with people is used to propagate the lessons in this book and other ones which I have read. All these ideas are written out in the journal that I carry about every day for easy reference.
4. Quotes: Are there brief quotes from the book which really got your attention? If so, please list and comment on them.
“The job of the corporate leader is to set a mission, decide upon a strategic direction, achieve the necessary cooperation, delegate authority – and then leave people alone”.
Genuine caring and recognition of efforts is the main incentive that real leaders give to people to empower them before delegating authority to them. The desire of the leader to understand the needs of the people who are depending upon him and the ability to create an environment in which they themselves can fulfill those needs is important. But the leader needs right words and attitudes in this regard.
The five most important words a leader can speak are: “I am proud of you”.
The four most important are: “What is your opinion”
The three most important are: “If you please”.
The two most important are: “Thank you”
And the most important single word of all is: “You”!
“To travel hopefully is a better thing than to arrive”
– Robert Lewis Stevenson
When hope is lost, all is lost; the hope to achieve an objective does more good in the heart than the accomplishment of the mission.
Life is not a destination, it is a journey. Life is not a treasure hunt, it is the treasure itself. Each day introduces new experiences and new knowledge for new levels to be attained. Life is made up of small pleasures and tiny successes; it is not just one moment of triumph, but a process that must be enjoyed. Life is savored each day through intimate moments with a loved one, a family reunion, helping a friend, giving a smile, visiting a friend and meeting and receiving joy from others.
“The goal of the authentic leader is to cause people to think more of themselves”
You know real leaders by what they do to make others put on their thinking cap to live worthily. According to James Stewart:
They are never so big that they can’t bend down to help someone else.
They are never so wise that they don’t remember who taught them.
They are never so gifted that they won’t share their skills with others.
They are never so fearless that they don’t play by the rules and live by the law.
And they are never such big winners that they forget what it feels like to lose.
A leader raises other leaders around him; he expects his followers to win and conveys this message to them. He raises the self-esteem of his or her followers. When a child is convinced that he or she has the ability to fulfill high expectations, he or she will very likely live up to these expectations as an adult.
“The people who read the most are the most successful regardless of occupation”
Reading increases knowledge, general awareness of changes and trends in the world. Knowledge sharpens creative skills, enhances vocabulary, and opens up the mind to new points of view. For every new level that one desires, new knowledge is needed, and it is true that, “Readers are leaders”.
“You don’t have to know everything, as long as you know people who know the things you don’t”.
Harvey Mackay reveals in his quote above that there are a lot of things he doesn’t know, but he is always free to learn from the experts or ask for advice without any shame. Learn from mentors, from those who have been there before; not with people who have the same unresolved issues like your own.
“Losers let it happen, winners make it happen”
Winners are actors, and losers are acted upon.
For winners, the fact that something does not turn out the way they had thought was much less important than their willingness to take a risk.
If you act in a way to show that you’ve got the guts, and that you are in control of your own destiny, the world will respect you for it, even if the outcome prove you were wrong. Great people don’t act based on outcome but purpose.
”It’s not who you are that holds you back, it’s what you think you’re not”
In behavioral psychology, there is a concept known as learned helplessness. It is a situation whereby someone had “learnt” to feel helpless, even in situation where there’s no evidence to justify that feeling. He or she focuses on what they are not, unlike winners who look at what they are and at the positive contributions that they are determined to make.
“Get comfortable with the unfamiliar.”
Develop new experience, break your daily routines and start doing new things. Avoid watching T.V. for a month, go to new places, learn more about your inner self, your mood and what makes you happy or depressed.
“Verify before you glorify”
This is one of the rules of mental toughness. To know that everything that shines is not gold is to avoid getting carried away by things you see and hear. Such a mentality is needed for inner strength that makes one become a winner.
“Expect the best, plan for the worst, and be prepared for the unexpected”
Expect the Unexpected. Contingency planning is the real secret of mental toughness. Go the extra mile in your own preparation and get ready for any surprise since you cannot control what others do. But you can control your response to what happens.
Anticipate various alternatives and prepare for them well. Practice in the rain – and bring along your rainy-day running shoes even when the sun is shining. Once again, it is important for you to hope for the best, prepare for the worst, and keep yourself ready for surprises. In other words, “Build a shelter against a rainy day”
“Whatever appears soft and patient is really strong”
The paradox of toughness is that what appears aggressive and hard is easily broken. Water seems to be fluid and soft, but in time it can wear away the largest, hardest rock. Water has neither hand nor leg but it washes away anything that comes along its path.
“Bend with the wind and you’ll still be around when the hurricane passes and the good weather returns” – Lao– tzu
Don’t rush success. You don’t need to experience physical or emotional pain in order to succeed. Go with the flow and don’t try to row your boat against the tide. Trying to force your way against the current is a sign of emotional and intellectual weakness. Learn to use the aggressor’s own power and force to cause him to lose balance and fall as the experts do in martial arts.
A person who smiles at adversity is the one who understands that goals are best achieved by going with the tide and with the wind, without force, anger or impatience.
“What you see is what you get, regardless of whether you know it or not.”
Before you can see what you want to achieve, you have to believe it; and what you see is who you’ll be. You can change your life by seeing from within, in your mind’s eye. By seeing fear and problems you can make yourself depressed, and as a result, you can lower your performance in every area of life: finance, health, relationship and personality. The truth is that the heart cannot tell the difference between what is real and what the mind imagines.
“What you see is who you’ll be”
Your imagination takes you beyond the limits of space and time. When you close your eyes, images and thoughts flow through your mind. You can visualize anything in the past or preview future possibilities. If you believe what you see, your actions both physical and mental will move to bring about in reality the image you are visualizing.
“Your true priorities as a leader are communicated by your handling of dozens of small issues”
– Tom Peters –
Whatever you do consistently, whether small or great, whether good or bad, is what people are going to use to measure you. They want to learn from what you do, not from what you say. Be honest with yourself, you know whether what you are doing is right or not. If your voice or your song is not melodious, you can hear it with your ears.
Do you observe the golden rule? Show peoples what to do by doing it yourself.
“Having power is like drinking salt water: the more you consume, the thirstier you get.”
These words are quite instructive: there is no doubt that fame and fortune tend to breed arrogance and a sense of immense power. This can foster a sense of living beyond the laws that govern everyone else. This scenario is more evident in Africa where we have a lot of sit- tight rulers who change laws at will to stay in power.
However, by setting an example of honesty, consistency, and commitment in all your relationships, you can create a kind of wealth for yourself and your family that’s of much greater value than fame and fortune.
5. Is there anything in the book that you do not understand or are unclear about, or are there ideas which you disagree with and if so, why?
There is nothing that I did not understand in the book, and there are no ideas I disagree with.
6. Did the book contain exercises for the reader to complete? If so, did you complete all of the exercises and did you find them helpful?
The book contained exercises for the reader to complete which were completed by me. The exercises were helpful in that they made the lessons being projected in the book to become practical.
7. Is there anything you read in the book you would like to comment on that was not covered in the previous questions? If so, please comment.
QUALITY OF LEADERSHIP
• Leaders must have ability to accept guidance from others. They must have respect and trust for authority without necessarily becoming a ‘robot’.
• Leaders must have the ability to think independently and out of the box.
• Leaders must possess high tolerance for order and organization. He or she can adapt to any change in routine in contrast to others, who find their daily events overwhelming.
Ability to strike a balance between high respect for authority, high capacity for organization and planning, and sense of independence to do right things will make a person a good leader.
– Listen more and allow people to ask questions so that they don’t perform a task without sufficient information. Winners depend upon L.U.C.K, which means Laboring Under Correct Knowledge. The correct knowledge must come from you.
– Use praise frequently and sincerely. If you have to correct a person, don’t do it in front of others.
– Be firm and be fair. Have defined rules, schedules and boundaries. Avoid nagging or giving unnecessary orders, otherwise, people will protect themselves by ignoring you.
– Plan leisure and recreational activities that everyone can do together.
– Be humble to let others know you have weaknesses. Don’t be afraid to share your concerns with people.
– If you have a positive image of yourself as a person, you can admit weakness, even fear and anxiety, and it will not affect your mission.
– Under promise and over deliver to enhance faith in you as a leader.
– Don’t look for mistakes but use every event, good or bad to teach effective habits and skills.
– Encourage habit of respect and observe the Golden Rule. A good leader allows people to express their views and respect them. He or she sow seeds into other’s lives by expecting them to be successful and telling them so in words and actions. People live up to the names you call them and what you demand from them.
All the above qualities help leaders to bring people together. I saw an interview with Jose Mourinho who is one of the successful football coaches in Europe. He described one of his coaching strategies as the ability to communicate with his team and to make them express their talents. “Self-expression,” William Winter says, “is the dominant necessity of human nature”.
People want freedom; the more powers real leaders have, the less they use. Real power comes by empowering others; power multiplies only when you share it. Providing an environment in which your followers could flourish is the definition of leadership in the new-age.
SELF ESTEEM AND SELF DEVELOPMENT
“You’d better learn how to like yourself, because you’re going to be spending a lot of time with you”
– Jerry Lewis in “Nutty Professor” –
Part of our private victory is conquering self. To overcome in the inner world, we need self – esteem and self – trust.
• Self esteem or lack of it is at the root of all behavior, both positive and negative.
• Self esteem is made up of both self-worth and self-trust. Self-worth is the feeling of being satisfied with all your physical possessions and self-trust is the belief in your own ability to control effectively what happens to you in spite of challenges.
• No opinion or judgment by others is important to your growth and development as that which you hold in the privacy of your own mind.
• The only hindrance to your personal success and happiness is you:
– When you want to prove yourself to be perfect.
– When you want to have the approval of people or please all.
– When you want fail to forgive yourself of past mistakes.
– When you feel incapacitated to change your own situation by yourself.
• Erase the voices of the past inside you by your own self-talk. Your own voice is more important than other voices but
i. Ensure that you do not run yourself or others down with your self-talk.
ii. Don’t use self talk to rationalize your action or resign yourself to fate.
iii. If you’re determined to be perfect in physical, mental or emotional skills every time you’re called upon, you will easily repress your inner feelings, because you want to justify your performance or behavior.
Seeking for perfection in physical and mental skills leaves one open to frustration, aggression, and, and other failure symptoms. Awareness of learning process makes the learner know that growth is a process of trial and error, with different levels of performance. You’ll sabotage your self-development if you condemn your mistakes in your self-talk than encouraging yourself for your little achievements with positive self-talk. In other words, you will sabotage yourself if you don’t ever see anything good in yourself but failure.
Please rate the following questions on a scale from 1 to 10. Ten is good and one is poor.
A. How interesting was it to read? 9
B. How helpful were the contents? 10
C. How easy was it to understand? 8
D. Would you recommend it to others? 10
E. What is the overall rating you would give it? 9
How to Win Friends And Influence People
Assessment by Ayoade Anthony (Nigeria)
1. What is the main idea that the author is trying to convey in the book?
The main idea that the author is trying to convey in the book is how to build a strong personality and lead people effectively.
2. What were the seven ideas which were personally most important to you and why? List these seven ideas followed by an explanation after each one as to why it was important to you. Use personal examples from your own life.
i. One of the fundamental techniques in handling people is to avoid criticism, condemning, or complaining about them. People don’t criticize themselves for anything, no matter how wrong it may be, so criticizing them is futile because you’ll just be putting them on the defensive and he or she will strive to justify their actions. Appreciating this idea is important because it had damaged and is damaging so many relationships.
Personally, I have done a lot of preaching to people with little or no results. It is clear that it is difficult to criticize people and expect them to change easily. This new knowledge has revealed to me that criticisms, condemnations, and complaints do not motivate or inspire people to change. It agrees with what Mahatma Gandhi said: you cannot change people; you can only be the change you wish to see in people.
ii. You can make every one that you meet develop interest in you by talking in terms of their interests and allowing them to talk their hearts out. All of us face a lot of stress everyday, and we are glad to see someone who can appreciate this and listen to us wholeheartedly. Becoming a listening ear will make people develop interest in you. I am a counselor and the above idea is now being used by me.
iii. Your ideas can be sold to people by influencing their behaviors to your way of thinking. I have ideas that I need to sell to people for implementation. To get the right people involved, I need to influence them to my way of thinking. I have not made appreciable progress on this in the past due to my criticisms, complaints, and condemnations. It is fruitless arguing with people but showing regard for their opinion even if it is contradictory to mine. People easily get disarmed and influenced by saying ‘I’m sorry’ when I am wrong. I have been able to mend fences with people by apologizing when I overreacted over minor issues. Being a teacher in the church and also a motivational speaker, I have the need to influence people. To do this, I’ve realized that I need right words and attitudes to change people’s heart – they want to be convinced that I am a sincere friend. In my speeches, I’ve learnt to begin my discussion on the things which will get the audience saying “Yes”, Yes” before going into the details.
iv. When you treat people not as what they are at the moment but what they can be, you can change them without hassles, and become a real leader irrespective of your color, sex, age or position.
My leadership is defined by the way I am able to change people’s attitude and behavior without hassles. I used to see people as difficult but as long as I have this view, I can’t change people, and I have decided to have these attitudes:
– Avoid slapping people in the face with rebuke each time they make mistake.
– Making people realize my vulnerability rather than my perfection.
v. Giving honest and sincere appreciation is a good technique in handling people: What is not appreciated will depreciate.
Everyone likes being appreciated but this simple act is being neglected by me. The wrong attitude had been shown to me over the years: more people have condemned me for little errors I committed than those who praised me for great achievements I have made. There are wrong behaviors I wish to change in people who are close to me. When I begin to motivate and inspire them by honestly appreciating their strength or good point before telling them their weakness or unpleasant conduct, my advice is more effective.
vi. To influence people, arouse in them and eager want, that is, bait the hook to suit the fish. Whoever understands this idea and makes use of it will become an effective “fisher of men”. Like fish, man can be slippery, but the hook can be baited to suit the fish. It is good to know that when you give people the feelings they want, you’ll have the whole world with you. I have always believed that people should know as much as I do, so I attempt to force my views down their throat when they make mistakes. Of course, they always spew it out because they feel it is bitter. You can not force a man to take a bitter pill if he doesn’t know its need. When you make him know that he needs it, he’ll willingly take it.
vii. Two simple ways to positively influence people is to smile at them and remember their names. People are willing to share joy with me through my smiles than the frown on my face. When I make the hopeless ones feel that there is joy in the world through my smiles, he or she will forget their worries. I engage in door to door evangelism and I make use of this strategy to attract people’s attention. I always make sure a smile is shown on my face because it is a simple way to make a good first impression. Apart from smiles, another simple thing that is very important is remembering a person’s name because it strengthens relationships. I endeavor to know people’s names by heart; calling the name of a person is the sweetest and most important sound in any language.
3. How will these ideas or lessons help you in a practical way, both in your daily personal life and in helping you to create a better world? If so, how?
* When I stop criticizing and condemning others unnecessarily, they will not be put on the defensive. Hurting the sense of pride or sense of importance of people breeds resentment – a symptom of failure. The resentment that criticism brings demoralizes people instead of transforming them. I am now trying to make use of this new knowledge in my interaction with members of my family, my church members and co-workers by avoiding harsh words in correcting them.
* Man likes being flattered by allowing him to do all the talking especially if the subject of discussion is his area of interest. To arouse people’s attention, I need to deliberately find out where their interest lies and find something in it for them to talk about. Better relationships will be built in this way; people will always come to me for advice because I give them my ears.
* Arguments create discord and resentment and any institution where these negative symptoms exist, there can’t be any progress. I am making it a personal principle never to engage in argument with people because no one wins in it. Instead, tempers rise when all sorts of negative emotions manifest from all parties involved. When I become a model and not a critic, when I become a light and not a judge, when people see my new identity, they can be influenced to have better attitudes and behavior; and the world becomes a better place for all of us.
* People need medicine to get well but unfortunately they don’t acknowledge their sickness; to make people see reason is the tough job of the real leader. The sickness in this case is people’s wrong attitude and behavior, and the medicine is the applications of the right strategy- treat people as what you want them to be.
Even when people behave foolishly, I need to detest using derogatory words to describe them. I must not look down on them from my position of authority but look up to them. Coating the bitter pill with sweetness makes it easy to be swallowed. I am learning to first of all find something to praise in people’s strength before calling their attention to the weakness. When this “sandwich approach” in communication is adopted by all of us, resentments will be minimized and our lives will become better for it.
In counseling others, my skill is enhanced by the idea that people must be treated not as what they are at the moment but what they can be. My message becomes more effective when I let people know that I had been in their shoes before. I ensure that I talk about my own mistakes and vulnerability; creating such atmosphere builds mutual confidence. When people have a place to pour out their minds, it brings positive changes in their lives and the society.
* The idea that what you do not appreciate will depreciate is important for all of us to understand. We were created to appreciate God and everything in the world; our refusal to do this is one of the causes to chaos in the world today. When I am broadminded to know that I should not feel more important than others, irrespective of my physical achievements and physical identity. Racial, ethnic and religious strife from Gaza in the Middle-East to Darfur in Africa are results of failure of people to appreciate one another. The world will become peaceful when we begin to do to others what we want them to do to us; when our new consciousness makes us recognize and celebrate the diversity in the world.
* It is good to know that I can make people become eager to do what I want by sowing seeds into their lives. I don’t deserve people’s respect if I don’t provide service or sow positively into their lives. Distributing these values among people makes me a leader and a source of influence in my daily activities. Each of us needs to take actions that give hope and encouragement to people we relate with as employers, employees, spouses, parents, and so on. By the time we all become change agents, no one will ever walk alone in the world.
4. Are there brief quotes from the book which really got your attention? If so, please list and comment on them.
i) “Education is the ability to meet life’s situations” – Dr. John Hibben
Education is not complete if it cannot liberate the soul and set potentials free. When a person becomes free, he/she begins to make positive impact in any environment. They begin to see needs and take actions to fill the gaps. They begin to see beyond what others are seeing and do the right things for the betterment of all. They begin to see beyond self and see the world as their territory. An educated mind begins to teach itself and ultimately needs no one to teach it.
ii) “By fighting, you never get enough, but by yielding you get more than you expected” – Old proverb
You yield by your eagerness to criticize yourself and admit your error. You get separated from the crowd by admitting your mistakes instead of shifting blames. The display of such courage and character takes fight out of your opponent and makes you get more than you expected.
iii) “A drop of honey catches more flies than a gallon of gall” – Abraham Lincoln
The use of gentleness and friendliness will change a man’s heart faster to your way of thinking than saying the truth without these elements.
iv) “If you teach a man anything, he will never learn” – Bernard Shaw
The natural man has an untrained mind; he does not like being taught by anyone but likes judging others – his pride is his nemesis. He believes no one has anything to teach him other than all he had known.
v) “As much as we thirst for approval, we dread condemnation” – Hans Selye
The masses of people don’t criticize themselves for anything, no matter how wrong it may be. But the special ones judge themselves before they are judged; correcting these ones is effective because they won’t strive to justify their wrong actions.
The reason why most people dread condemnation and never learn despite being corrected is their pride or sense of importance.
vi) “Judge not, that ye be not judged”
People never learn; no amount of words can change them; so a great leader will put questions across to people to make them judge themselves. In this wise, resentment for being corrected or condemned is not created and such weak persons will be in a better position to change. A weak person who is condemned directly will condemn you in return and say, “I don’t know how I could have done things differently from what I have.” Do you continue to criticize such a person or pity him? You will pity him when you know that he is just what you would be under similar circumstances.
Always remember that people will never learn, and forcing them is like trying to bend a dry fish – it will break. The resentment that direct criticism and condemnation brings had damaged many relationships, and the situation that has been condemned remains unchanged.
vii) “Don’t complain about the snow on your neighbor’s roof, when your own doorstep is unclean” – Confucius
Everybody has strengths and weaknesses. Great people appreciate the fact that despite their own strengths, they still have some weaknesses to contend with. If so, a good leader appreciates other people’s weaknesses and has learnt not to use them to complain and criticize people. A great man shows his greatness by the way he treats little men.
viii) “I am hearty in my approbation and lavish in my praise” – Charles Schwab
Parents who criticize end up destroying the self-esteem of their children, they neglect to give them kind words of appreciation that would sing in their hearts for a lifetime. The same goes for husbands and wives, bosses and their workers, teachers and students.
We see mistakes easily than good deeds probably due to our background. For most of us, as children, nobody praised us when we did well at school, so we don’t see any reason why we should praise our children who performed well. After all, we provided everything they needed. We neglect such things, forgetting that little things make for excellence; but excellence is not a little thing.
ix) “Our chief want in life is somebody who shall make us do what we can”
– Ralph Waldo Emerson
When someone is appreciated, it raises his hope to realize his dream. Make people not to think hopelessly and they will get over their seemingly hopeless situation.
x) “Bait the hook to suit the fish”
Arouse in the other person an eager want and you’ll make him do your bidding. To influence people, talk about what they want and show them how to get it. Give people the feelings they want, and you’ll have the whole world with you. People want to be praised, they want loyalty, they want appreciation, they want security, and they want encouragement. If there is any secret of handling people, it is one’s ability to understand other people’s feelings and problems.
xi) “Good manners are made up of petty sacrifices” – Emerson
Petty sacrifices include, smiling at people, remembering their names, allowing a person to talk about his or her own self, and talking in terms of their interests in your conversation. Anyone who can pay these little prices will be seen as good mannered; and he or she will always win with people.
xii) “Few human beings are proof against the implied flattery of rapt attention.”
Most people feel great when you give them the privilege of doing all the talking while you listen with rapt attention. Silence tames a complainant as he dilates like a king cobra and spews the poison out of his system.
xiii) “Talk to people about themselves, and they will listen for hours”
If you have to talk, make sure your conversation centers on your listener’s area of interest, then, he or she will like you.
xiv) “Do unto others as you would have others do unto you”
This is the most important rule in the world. The desire to be important is a deep urge in human nature. To become important just do things that make others feel important. What you sow is what you reap.
xv) “Every man I meet is my superior in some way – in that, I learn of him”
Every human being is unique; it takes time to understand him or her. At the end of the day you will learn one or two lessons from their attitudes and behaviors. Every experience is for a purpose.
5. Is there anything in the book that you do not understand or are unclear about, or are there ideas which you disagree with and if so, why?
There are no such things.
6. Did the book contain exercises for the reader to complete? If so, did you complete all of the exercises and did you find them helpful?
The book contains no exercises.
7. Was there anything in the book that you would like to comment on that was not covered in the previous questions? If so, please comment.
There is nothing else that had not been covered by previous questions.
Please rate the following questions on a scale from 1 to 10.
A. How interesting was it to read? 10
B. How helpful were the contents? 10
C. How easy was it to understand? 10
D. Would you recommend it to others? 10
E. What is the overall rating you would give it? 10
Leadership For Dummies
Assessment by Ayoade Anthony ( Nigeria)
1. What is the main idea that the author is trying to convey in the book?
The main idea in the book is about how to acquire the skills needed to become a leader: eliciting the cooperation of others, listening, and putting others before self. It further shows how these can be used to achieve greater respect, greater recognition, greater cooperation and success in all areas of life.
2. What were the seven ideas which were personally most important to you and why? List these seven ideas followed by an explanation after each one as to why it was important to you. Use personal examples from your own life.
i) Leaders are made, not born; but all leadership is temporary
Napoleon Bonaparte said, “Every French soldier carries a Marshal’s baton in his knapsack.” He believed that every soldier under him had the potential to be a general. It is important to do away with the limiting belief that everyone cannot be a leader. In reality, all of us have the potential to lead but the leadership potential must be recognized and developed.
Real leaders develop people around them to become leaders by making them do more than what they think they are capable of doing. Successful leaders are aware that the position they hold is temporary, so they motivate potential leaders by words and deeds. They choose to make certain qualities central to their character. For example, they don’t shift blame but look inward when things go wrong, and they get the cooperation of others to accomplish a mission. Trust binds the leader to the followers, and this is made possible when the leader is proactive and responsible for everything that goes right or wrong. At this level the leader can identify good followers who can act creditably in his absence.
“Born to rule” is an anachronistic slogan being used as a motto in one of the states in my country, Nigeria. Such limiting beliefs promote laid-back people as leaders and no one can be a leader if he or she is wary of responsibility and accountability.
In developing countries, some set of people tend to see themselves as automatic leaders by virtue of their birth or position in the society. The bureaucrats see their university education as a prerequisite for position of authority in government establishments, but the correlation between education and intelligence is unknown. These arrangements do not give room for thinking out of the box; they only maintain the status quo. Development is thereby hindered in such environment because the institution is not moving in new direction due to the absence of real leaders who can chart a new course.
ii) Intelligence is a tool of effectiveness for leaders
The tool of effectiveness is our emotional intelligence or what some refer to as intrapersonal skills. Many leaders are not highly schooled but can take a limited amount of information and translate it into a purpose and goal for him and his followers. He or she possesses the intelligence to assess the skills of people.
There are eight things effective people do to show that they are really intelligent, according to Marshal Loeb and Stephen Kindel, in the book, “Leadership for Dummies”
1. They respond to situations flexibly, based on circumstances and needs.
2. They take advantage of opportunities when others fail to see them.
3. They use their intelligence to seek more truth to understand and make sense out of difficult situations and ambiguous messages without losing their heads.
4. They identify and focus on the most important component of a complex and interlocking set of facts.
5. They find similarities between situations based on experience despite similarities that may separate them. Their experience as a leader in one institution is easily used to lead in another different institution.
6. They recognize that situations rarely repeat themselves exactly, so, they identify the differences between seemingly similar situations and use them advantageously.
7. They have the ability to put old ideas and information together into a new direction or goal.
8. They read situations well and come up with creative ideas.
Emotional intelligence or maturity leads to motivation for what you are doing beyond the money, prestige or power attached to it. Majority of people don’t put their heart in what they do other than what they want to gain. Such people don’t have the inner drive to perform beyond their own or anyone else’s expectations.
Intelligence is about keeping your head when others are losing theirs. It is the ability to put other’s needs above self, to understand other people’s feelings, and hearing their voices to know what drives them. Maturity or emotional intelligence makes one provide solutions for challenges before they emerge.
Recently, I had some challenges in my place of work on how to relate with a recalcitrant subordinate, I had to find common ground with her, in order to have mutual agreement on our mission in the office. While discussing with her, I was open and friendly in my approach, the strategy worked and she decided to turn a new leaf.
iii) Communication is a tool for building leadership muscle
The buck stops on the table of the leader to communicate his intentions clearly without room for ambiguity in the mind of the followers. Otherwise, the group will not be motivated and inspired to act. Effective communication involves the ability to elicit the cooperation of others, listening well and placing others above self. A good leader hears people’s body language more than what they say. He or she asks questions and allow people to do all the talking in order to obtain facts from them.
Eliciting the cooperation of others necessitates offering something for something. A leader must have a value to give before he or she can expect something back from their followers. To place the needs of your followers above your own, you must focus on your common vision with others, acknowledge the importance of the mission and appreciate the challenges your followers are facing rather than dwell on your own concerns or needs and blaming anyone. A leader who communicates these actions becomes strong.
Challenges are bound to come but don’t focus on them, find the fault, correct it, and move on. To do this, a balanced combination of self-drive, self-confidence and the ability to communicate is needed.
Communication is enhanced by your ability to manage information; it is what separates a more successful leader from a less successful one. Good leader doesn’t wait for information, but instead seeks it out. A great leader assembles “core people” or “kitchen cabinet” that have ideas and knowledge in diverse areas to help in networking and give ideas that will assist in creating and achieving the common goal. The leader makes better decision when his followers get smarter. Keeping everyone informed and not hoarding information encourages a learning environment. People come up with new ideas to solve problems and move the group forward when information is shared. In every organization that I have worked, I emphasize my open door policy for all my subordinates to follow, and I have had an appreciable rate of success in this regard.
iv) The greatest mission of a leader is being a savior
Mission is what the leader has to do to get to his goal and its purpose.
In any leadership position you may find yourself at every institutional level, your mission fits into any of these three roles: chief strategist, chief marketing officer, or savior.
The role of the chief strategist is to select a mission, and the role of the chief marketing officer is to decide to whom it must be sold, and how.
The most daring kind of leadership is to take up the role of the savior. It is a sacrificial position where you are not expected to succeed. The difference between the savior and other leaders is his personality, while the strategist is cool and analytical, and the marketer is warm and outgoing, the savior is abrasive and self-absorbed. He is self-independent and possesses simple ideas to drastically change the status quo and is willing to put his personal convenience at stake, Abraham Lincoln, Martin Luther King are examples.
In my church and place of work, I look for opportunity beyond my normal routine duties to go the extra mile to use my resources in cash and kind to be of service to others. I believe that in the long run, the return will be many times greater than the effort.
v) Leadership is an art that can be learnt
Skills separate the leader from the manager, the skills to set direction, to arbitrate and mediate, to make decisions, to inspire, and to facilitate.
In the words of Oliver Wendell Holmes, “I find the great thing in this world is not so much where we stand, as in what direction we are moving”
Good leaders possess the skill to move their team in the right direction, but they take the following factors into consideration:
– The skills of the team
– The ability of the team to work together
– The resources available to the team.
– The competition for those resources elsewhere.
Personally, I inculcate the habit of self improvement as I have discovered that without continuous development, it is difficult to possess leadership skills, and the books I read put me in good position to cope.
vi) Volunteering is a form of leadership
Volunteering involves placing the needs of other above self. You have to use your time and skills to seek for the cooperation of others, and listen to their needs.
Volunteers come in three forms: Head Volunteering, Heart Volunteering, and Hearth volunteering.
The professional who writes consistently in the papers on the way forward to have good and responsive leaders in the society is a head volunteer. The greater good of what she does is distant and somewhat removed, but her efforts affect what ultimately happens. The same professional may take a step further to get herself actively involved in activities that can make the bad leaders more uncomfortable. Jody Williams; who took it upon herself to form the international campaign to ban land mines can be described as a heart volunteer. She gets joy in seeing her efforts bear fruits, in making life meaningful for others.
Hearth volunteers engage in activities that improve their immediate surroundings to make the world a better place. The volunteering can be in her church, her children’s school, or other family-centered activities.
To perform well in any voluntary job, your leadership skills must match up with what you want to do, then get prepared to give it the time required.
Eight ways to be a great volunteer leader:
– Be well-informed
– Be smart
– Be vocal
– Be determined
– Be urgent
– Be prudent
– Be consistent and dependable
– Be trustworthy.
vii) Belief creates vision and it has its great strength and great weakness.
An unbeliever may have nothing to arrest his heart in form of hope, but he is not as dangerous as a believer who can go to any length to protect his or her belief – the reason for religious intolerance and killing of fellow human beings in the name of religious belief. The killings and destruction of properties happening in Nigeria today are being caused by people who go out of their way to listen to selfish leaders who give them wrong things to believe in. The world had not been short of charismatic and good leaders like Martin Luther King, Mahatma Ghandi, Abraham Lincoln and Winston Churchill who used their charisma to make a lot of followers have positive beliefs and personal vision.
Strong belief in the purpose of the group you belong goes a long way in staying committed to the cause of the organization. Successful leaders supply people with something to believe through their vision. Both leaders and followers now take time to understand the group’s vision as much as possible. A shared vision makes people more than willing to sacrifice time, effort and energy on behalf of the enterprise. When the purpose of the group is positive, a strong belief in it by people creates peace and development in the environment. But if the purpose is self-serving, a strong belief in it is dangerous and destructive as it is happening in northern Nigeria recently.
3) How will these ideas or lessons help you in a practical way, both in your daily personal life and in helping you to create a better world? If so, how?
The idea that anyone can be a leader makes me see myself as a leader who can effect a positive change in the world. I don’t need to be in an elected position before I can function as a leader, the only thing I need to do is to have the attitudes of a leader: eliciting cooperation from others, listening, and putting others need above mine. Each time I put up these attitudes in my relationships, lives of people around me are positively influenced, thereby giving me the opportunity to transform them.
Sources of concern to me personally are the leadership and governance challenges in Africa despite our immense potentials, and the need to overcome them. I see the challenges as an opportunity for me to develop the leader within me and the potential leaders around me. As part of my contribution to change the situation, I embark on visits to schools in my town to educate and enlighten the youths on the collective vision of building Nigeria. I believe a wake-up call to face the challenges confronting us will make a positive difference in the world on the long run.
My leadership positions in my place of work, place of worship, and at home are temporary, so I pass necessary information across to people through personal discussions, meetings and seminars that I have with them.
In my attempt to lead some teams, I have encountered various challenges but the idea that the greatest mission is being a savior has given me a paradigm shift. Most challenges in the world today come from dearth of leaders who have no leadership muscle. They force their will down their follower’s throat; I am having a dosage of this wrong attitude from hierarchical leaders around me who are not willing to make any sacrifice. And unfortunately, I had been exhibiting this behavior in my interactions with people; but the new ideas I acquire from the IIGL books continue to open my eyes.
The idea that emotional intelligence is a tool of effectiveness for leaders is assisting me further in overcoming wrong behaviors. I have written from this book eight things effective people do to show that they are intelligent. I put these guidelines in a place where I read them everyday to guide me to be friendly in my demeanor and to become an effective leader.
Beliefs create vision and it has its great strength and great weakness. I can use the strength of belief to create vision for myself if they are empowering beliefs. I or any other person for that matter has the ability to possess empowering beliefs by associating with positive and superior minds physically or on pages of books. A better world is created when we purge ourselves of wrong beliefs which make us kill or destroy under the guise of personal beliefs. This is a great weakness of belief that I preach against so as to have a peaceful world.
Leadership is an art. It requires skills as footballers would use to perform better than others; it gives the winning edge we require in a dynamic world that is changing. Every artful performance comes from powerful intrapersonal skills developed through reflective thinking and acquisition of knowledge which I do everyday and also advice people to do as well.
Volunteering is a form of leadership. Opportunity to serve others conscientiously is provided through volunteering for those who believe that, “What you do for others, God will do for you.”
I have experienced occasions where voluntary jobs later provided bigger opportunities and rewards. As part of my motivational talks to unemployed graduates, I encourage them to take up voluntary jobs and do it well; it is a powerful way to learn new things, to love, to become purposeful, and responsible. Every voluntary job performed definitely leads to a better world for all.
Recently, I took up a voluntary teaching appointment with a state government in Nigeria to teach Life Skills which I see as an opportunity to motivate and inspire the youths especially with the knowledge that I am acquiring from IIGL books.
I used to see anyone who writes to correct the ills in the society as lone voice in the wilderness, now I know that they are head volunteers whose efforts affects what happens in the long run. On the strength of this awareness, I am now using the print and electronic media to express my views on my observed ills in the society.
4. Quotes: Are there brief quotes from the book which really got your attention? If so, please list and comment on them.
i) “What does the dog that’s chasing a car do with it once it catches it?
– Shelly Zelaznick –
Every leader that is worth his salt knows when to quit and he knows that leadership is temporary. Every leader must avoid the feeling that no progress can be made without his or her presence, instead they should try to build successors. A leader who can’t reproduce his kind has failed. After harvesting his crops and a wise leader had filled his barn with more than he personally needs, he begins to think about how his success can be shared with others.
ii) “As you grow older, you will discover that you have two hands; one for helping yourself, and the other for helping others.”
These days, the lower class does not have access to elected officials who are supposed to see to the wrong issues in the community. Saul Alinsky founded the Industrial Areas Foundation to train community organizers, a school meant to raise the awareness of people to participate in democracy at the civic level. Anyone can begin to reinvent citizenship by taking up problems in the community that the governments are not handling: Teen pregnancy, bad governance, ethnic violence, corruption, illiteracy, poverty. A good example is the story of Muhammad Yunus, who founded Grameen Bank in Bangladesh to address poverty in his community.
Many lives have been changed and communities have been transformed through the effort of someone who decided to mobilize others to act when a need arose.
In Nigeria, as I am writing this assessment, the citizens are furious over the enormous personal monthly allowance the elected officers in government institutions are collecting to the detriment of infrastructural growth in their various communities. The selfishness of people in the corridors of power and lack of conscience is the bane of development in underdeveloped countries. Some groups have been formed by concerned citizens in Nigeria and people are being mobilized, to react through the media and other peaceful ways to the anomalies in the country.
iii) “Leadership is situational, and situations change”
Exemplary people are leaders who can read situations well to know when to strike or take action. A particular problem could have defied solution; what it needs may be the right time and circumstances to solve it or a creative idea.
The reunification of Germany had been on ground for many years without solution until 1988 when Helmut Kohl, West Germany’s Chancellor recognized the right occasion to come up with a new deal. The Soviet Union was in serious danger of riots from food shortages because of a series of harsh winters and economic setback arising from the war with Afghanistan. Kohl proposed a deal to supply food to Russia if they would allow talks on the reunification to commence. The situation on ground could not make Russia to resist the offer, and the world witnessed an immediate end to a protracted struggle.
iv) “A high degree of emotional intelligence accounted for 90 percent of the difference between average leaders and star performers.”
– Daniel Goleman –
Leaders and managers are known by the things they do, while the former lead people, the latter manage things. Star performers use their hearts where others use their heads; they think about the future and see it before it comes whereas managers are holed up with the past and the present.
Star performance requires emotional intelligence or maturity – a measure of a person’s self-awareness, self-control, motivation, empathy, and social skill. A star performer is able to overcome his or her wrong emotions and those of others, anything short of this leads to poor self-motivation. Obviously, if you can’t motivate yourself, you cannot motivate others and seek their cooperation.
Great athletes under adversity, after they’ve missed a shot or a pass, are likely to smile. Admitting their mistakes to themselves and shrugging it off with a smile creates the emotional balance to face the task of scoring and winning the game that still lies ahead.
v) “I never met a man I didn’t like” -Will Roger
Stretching oneself to live according to the words of Will Roger is a powerful way to build leadership muscles. To become a good leader you must learn how to love people. If not, you can hardly become an effective leader that will be remembered after you have gone.
I have met a few people who are really difficult to satisfy; love is not in their vocabulary but the knowledge for me now is to learn to love people. Laboring under this current knowledge ensures peace, an essential ingredient for personal and institutional growth and development.
vi) “Job should be selected not accepted” – Lester Korn
Successful leadership requires honest assessment of self, taking cognizance of your strengths and weaknesses. You must be honest with yourself by ascertaining whether you have the intelligences or skills required to do the job at hand.
How do you rate yourself on the three main leadership attitudes: the ability to elicit cooperation, the ability to listen, and the ability to place others above yourself? These attitudes define the leadership ceiling that no one can rise above; if the ceiling is low, you’ll be a dwarf, and if it is high you can become a giant.
Do you know what you are expected to do? Do you know the people you are supposed to lead, and what they want? Is the mission of the followers different from the people who put you in charge? Answers to these questions will give you the preparation needed to become effective on the job.
vii) “A company controls the job, you control your career” – Lester Korn –
As a leader you have a mission to accomplish with your job and your career. Your job and your career are the two components to your personal mission or plan of action for reaching your goal. Your job is what you are expected to accomplish by your employer but your career advancement or outstanding performance is determined by what you can accomplish that is unexpected by your employer.
You have no mission in respect of the job you are doing if you don’t know what you want to accomplish or the purpose of your mission and you cannot do the job beyond expectations.
viii) “Knowing what thou knowest not is in a sense omniscience” – Piet Hein –
Concentrating on finding out what you don’t know instead of showing off what you do know makes you become wise. What you don’t know is above you and can kill you. Don’t dwell on what you know now as if that is all you need to know but struggle to fill in those gaps in your knowledge. What you know after you think you’ve known everything is what you really know. He who knows not and knows that he knows not knows something; but, he who knows not and does not know that he knows nothing knows nothing.
ix) “The solution to a problem lies in its definition” – Piet Hein –
There is actually no problem that has no solution, unless you have not found it, but it exists. Instead of saying, “I’ve tried all everything and can’t find a solution” the leader may only need to think deeply over the problem. In mathematics, the solution to an equation is in the equation itself once all variables are known.
x) “Imagination helps turn randomness into a vision”
No one fits into this quote better than the first African-American president of USA, Barack Obama, who made a self confession that his story is possible only in America. Taking his life experience and factoring in all the possibilities and his perspective of himself and the world, his imagination allowed him to become the number one citizen of America.
The combination of a man’s knowledge, experience, and imagination creates an idea that makes what seems not possible to become possible.
xi) “There’s book smarts and then there’s street smarts”
In 2008, we had a crash in various stocks and financial markets all over the world because everybody uses common knowledge to address common issues. Common knowledge is learnt in books. Experience has shown that those who have native intelligence or folk wisdom usually succeed where the book-smarts fail. The street smarts know how and where to use their sense organs to obtain results; they can see, smell, hear, touch, and taste what book smarts cannot sense.
5 Is there anything in the book that you do not understand or are unclear about, or are there ideas which you disagree with and if so, why?
There is nothing in the book that I did not understand or unclear about, and I disagree with no idea.
6. Did the book contain exercises for the reader to complete? If so, did you complete all the exercises and did you find them helpful?
The book contains exercises which I attempted and they helped me to assess my
leadership potential.
7. Was there anything you read in the book that you would like to comment on that was not covered in the previous questions? If so, please comment.
I have nothing else to comment about in the book.
Please rate the following questions on a scale of 1 to 10. Ten is good and one is poor.
A. How interesting was it to read? 10
B. How helpful were the contents? 10
C. How easy was it to read? 10
D. Would you recommend it to others? 10
E. What is the overall rating you would give it? 10
The Law Of Attraction
Assessment by Ayoade, Anthony (Nigeria)
1. What is the main idea that the author is trying to convey in his book?
The Law of Attraction gives to you any identified desire according to the attention you give to the desire and how you allow the desire. The law can be used to get more of what you want and less of what you don’t want.
2. What were the seven ideas which were personally most important to you and why? List these seven ideas followed by an explanation after each one as to why it was important to you? Use personal examples from your own life.
i) Good things can be deliberately or non-deliberately attracted.
Remembering, pretending, day dreaming, or mere observation of any negative event leads to a non-deliberate generation of negative vibrations and consequent attraction of negative experiences. The Law of Attraction gives you more of what you are vibrating, whether positive or negative, and everyone had been attracting what he or she had been observing whether they realize it or not. In other words, when we observe good things, we’ll experience good things; we ignorantly call this luck or serendipity.
There is a 3- step formula for Deliberate Attraction
Step 1: Identify your Desire
Step 2: Give Attention to your Desire
Step 3: Allow it
Now, I can attract anything I want into my life as long as I am able to follow the steps of deliberate attraction.
ii) Words influence the law of attraction.
Words have lot of influence over us, we relate with words in our minds while reading, hearing, speaking, writing, and thinking; therefore, we must be conscious of the quality of words we permit because the words we think and use generate the vibration we send out. We must avoid words that make us to attract what we don’t want. Learning to reduce and eventually eliminate the use of the words, “no”, “don’t”, “not”, from our vocabulary makes the whole mind strong to give attention, focus and energy to what we want rather than what we do not want. Average mind gives attention to negative words easily than positive words just like the soil indiscriminately grows weeds. But crops have to be cultivated so wise people deliberately use positive words to attract what they want.
We must ask what we want always rather than what we don’t want; whatever we ask is what we give attention and energy. Only one vibration can be sent out at a time; when our words change to what we want, our vibration changes as well. The results you are getting in a particular area of your life show whether you are sending positive or negative vibration. If you don’t like the results you are having in your life, you can change what you are vibrating instantly through your words, and the Law of Attraction does not remember what vibration you sent out yesterday. It only responds to the vibration you are sending out right now in this very moment and giving you more of it, whether positive or negative.
Every word that I speak or hear must give me positive vibration, I am now teaching people who relate with me to avoid any word that has to do with negativity while we are discussing.
iii) The attention you give to what you desire increases the vibration of your desire in your current vibration.
What makes you feel good in every area of your life is your desire, identify it and do more of it. You have a Vibrational Bubble around you based on your desire where all of your current vibration is stored. What you have inside this bubble is what the Law Attraction works on. You can’t realize any goal, dream, or desire that is not inside your Vibrational Bubble. You can put what you want inside this bubble by using words to give attention, energy and focus to the desire. The vibration of the bubble is raised and the desire is fuelled by creating a Desire Statement, especially when dealing with new desires that may be forgotten if not given deliberate attention.
There are so many negative events and people to think about in my environment; unfortunately we spend so much time complaining about our situation, and we end up offering negative vibration. The Law of Attraction responds to the negative vibration by giving us more of the negative events. My mentor used to tell us that he neither listens to early morning news nor reads newspapers because they are made up of bad news more than good news. Ever since I followed his idea, the negative words from these media are no longer part of the words I think about in my mind and my mood and feelings had become better for it.
iv) Your desires will never result in anything until you allow it by removing doubt.
It is possible to be excited in the past about a desire which never resulted in anything when there is a doubt surrounding the belief that is needed to attract the desire. The doubt-removing process which is the third and most important step in the Deliberate Attraction process is called “Allowing”. It is the absence of negative vibration or doubt. The speed at which the Law of Attraction manifest or responds to your desire is in direct proportion to how much you allow it by removing any negative vibration.
Doubts come from limiting belief. The statement, “I have to work hard to make money”, for example, is a limiting belief which creates negative vibration. A person will not get what he wants if his thoughts make him send out negative vibration. You can identify your limiting beliefs when the word ‘because’ shows up in your statements; for example, ‘I will like to get the car but I can’t because I don’t have money.’ You are allowing when you notice the sense of relief you feel and when the manifestation of your desires appears in your life.
Example of a Desire Statement
I am in the process of attracting all that I need to do, know or have to attract my ideal financial situation. I love how it feels when I spend money as a generous billionaire. The Law of Attraction is unfolding and orchestrating all that need to happen to bring me my desire I make Desire Statements in every area of my life that needs improvement and read it every time with inner satisfaction, knowing fully well that the task had already been accomplished in my inner world, it is just a matter of time for me to have it in my hand.
v) What you don’t want can be changed to what you want by asking, “So, what do I want?”
What you don’t want are contrasts, the more these contrasts can be identified, the more clarity you’ll generate. Contrasts help in making desires become clearer, but least attention must be given to contrast. The key to get what you want is that you mustn’t get stuck focusing on what you don’t want, so contrasts (what you don’t want) must only be briefly observed.
For example, if you’ve identified relationship as an area of your life that you need improvement, identify those things you don’t want but keep happening based on your past experiences with people. Don’t dwell on these contrasts but immediately identify the corresponding things you want that will make you feel good. You can know your ideal partner by using contrast and clarity; the relationships you’ve had in the past that you did not like make what you now want clear. When your clarity becomes your desire, and you stop giving your attention, energy and focus on what you don’t want, you will have an ideal relationship.
The difference between your vibration and someone else’s vibration equals the amount of resistance (negativity) you feel when you are with them. The masses of people complain, condemn, criticize, compare and contend because they dwell on what they actually don’t want, their words connote negative issues, and so is their vibration. You can either join them at their low vibration or help them to get out of the mess by simply asking them “so, what do you want?” Tips on how to attract your ideal relationship is summarized below:
Tip 1: Not complaining about your relationship
Tip 2: Identifying things you don’t want in your relationship
Tip 3: Leave the relationship if it is not working
Tip 4: Give more attention, energy and focus on relationship that is working by talking about it, writing about it, and thinking about what makes it work.
I discovered that the main challenge before people is that they actually do not know what they want; I had been in that shoe, but now I know better. As a counselor and teacher in the church, I encounter people with various challenges but the question I found convenient to ask them now is what they actually want, it is actually the first step towards any solution.
vi) Any belief can be changed by appropriate tools.
A limiting belief is a repetitive negative thought you think over and over again in your mind, you can change your thoughts to positive ones by thinking new positive thoughts over and over again to create your new beliefs. An effective tool to change a limiting belief is to create an Allowing Statement to lessen and remove doubts in order to allow a desire.
Steps in writing an Allowing Statement:
– Start by asking yourself if there is any one currently doing what you want to do or having what you want?
– If so, then how many people have been doing this today? Yesterday? Last week? Last month? Last year?
– Write your statements in general terms. (3rd person), because making reference to yourself may create more doubt.
– Ensure that the statements are possible.
Here is an example of how to create Allowing Statement for a limiting belief.
Limiting belief: I don’t have enough money
Allowing Statement:
Millions of people are receiving checks today. Everyday, billion of dollars are moved from bank account to bank account. Someone just received a check this minute.
Other Tools to help you to Allow or to remove doubt
Apart from Allowing Statements, there are other tools we can employ to help you to remove doubts as stated below:
Tool 1: Celebrate the proof.
Tool 2: Record your proof of the Law of Attraction.
Tool 3: Deliberately create habit of gratitude and appreciative spirit.
Tool 4: Use the Expression, “I’m in the process of …”
Tool 5: Use the Expression, “I’ve decided…”
Tool 6: Use the Expression, “Lots can happen…”
Tool 7: Ask for Information.
Tool 8: Make yourself an Attraction Box
Tool 9: Create a void or vacuum
Tool 10: Allow the Law of Attraction to Figure it Out
vii) You can attract a good thing by having feeling of abundance.
Feelings, either positive or negative give off vibrations and feelings of abundance gives positive vibrations. When you feel abundance in words and thoughts, the Law of Attraction does not know the source of your thoughts, whether it is as a result of remembering, pretending, creating, visualizing, or day dreaming. It is noteworthy that the law of Attraction entertains one type of vibration, either positive or negative vibration at a time. More deliberate creation of the vibration of abundance makes it enter your “Vibrational Bubble” more often, thus increasing abundance in your life.
Unfortunately, many have limiting beliefs about the sources where money and abundance can come from. They believe for example that more money can only come from what they earn monthly, ignoring the fact that there are many other ways where abundance is evident in their lives. Because they fail to recognize and generate the feeling of abundance around them, they don’t attract what they want.
Sources of abundance which people fail to appreciate include:
– Someone giving you free advice/coaching
– Receiving gifts or prize
– Buying at a discount
– Selling at a discount
Tools we can employ to create feelings of abundance:
Tool 1: Record Evidence of your Abundant-ness
Keeping a daily log of all the sources from which you are receiving abundance serves as evidence that abundance exist and is already present in your life. It shows there are already reasons to celebrate, and while celebrating you are offering the positive vibration of abundance. The Law of Attraction responds to the amount of vibration you offer and gives you more of the same.
An example of “Daily log of Abundance
Date:
I attract abundance when:
– A friend paid for my lunch
– I received free counseling
A daily log of abundance for seven days reveals how you’ve been so abundant; it helps you to offer more vibration of abundance and the Law of Attraction will give you more of the same.
Tool 2: Always say yes to money.
As long as a gift is genuine, your flow of abundance may be affected negatively if you reject the evidence of abundance due to pride, ignorance or any other reason.
Tool 3: Hold on to that check.
Anything that makes you feel a little bit of excitement raises your vibration, and holding on to a check you have just received for a day or more does that.
3. How will these ideas help you in a practical way, both in your daily personal life and in helping you to create a better world? If so, how?
The masses of the people complain of lack because they lack the knowledge of what to do to attract everything they need into their lives. Personally, I now have no reason not to achieve any goal or desire in my mind with all these ideas I am having from the book. These ideas are being applied in every area of my life, and in teaching my family and everyone I interact with, in fact I intend to adapt them into a book I am writing for the benefit of many others who are ignorant.
4. Quotes: Are there brief quotes from the book which really got your attention? If so, please list and comment on them.
“Allowing is the absence of doubt”
Doubt is a negative vibration; it cancels the positive vibration of a desire. Doubts come from limiting belief or repetitive negative thoughts in the mind. Allowing is the process whereby doubts about how to get your desire are removed from the mind; your job is not to try to figure things out intellectually but to let the law of attraction figure it out.
“What you think, say, or do concerning a desire gives attention, energy, and focus to the desire”
Everybody has a “Vibrational Bubble.” To include any desire in your current vibration, just say something, have some thoughts or do something pertaining to the desire. Praying, deliberating, talking, pretending, complaining, day dreaming, observing, and remembering: all these actions give strength to actualization of any desire. Everyone can deliberately attract what he or she wants according to the attention they give to the desire.
“Law of attraction responds to how you feel about what you say and how you feel about what you think.”
Your affirmations are as good as the words making up the statement. A statement made that is not really true in one’s heart is ineffective. Therefore, a Desire Statement must be made such that you’ll believe what you say from your heart. Until what you say in form of positive affirmation comes from your heart, it never makes you feel good; in this wise Law of Attraction can’t create circumstances and events to realize your desire. After writing your Desire Statement, read it and ask yourself how you feel. If you hear any negative inner voice, or have an uncomfortable feeling, revise the Desire Statement until it makes you feel great to raise your vibration when you read it. Your new desire will not be included in your “Vibrational Bubble” unless the vibration it generates is high enough.
5. Is there anything in the book that you do not understand or are unclear about, or are there ideas which you disagree with and if so, why?
There is nothing in the book I did not understand and no idea I disagree with.
6. Did the book contain exercises for the reader to complete? If so, did you complete all of the exercises and did you find them helpful?
The book contained exercises which I completed and were helpful.
7. Is there anything you read in the book you would like to comment on that was not covered in the previous questions? If so, please comment.
There is nothing else to comment.
Please rate the following questions on a scale from 1 to 10. Ten is good and one is poor.
A. How interesting was it to read? 9
B. How helpful were the contents? 10
C. How easy was it to understand? 9
D. Would you recommend it to others? 10
E. What is the overall rating you would give it? 9
Power Of Intention
Assessment by Ayoade Anthony (Nigeria)
1. What is the main idea that the author is trying to convey in the book?
The book is all about learning to be like the energy that created us by getting connected to the essence of our originating spirit and emulating the attributes of the power of intention to manifest creativity, kindness, love, beauty, expansion, abundance, and peaceful receptivity. Everything and everyone in the universe is connected to the power of intention, but man due to his ignorance and logical reasoning can get disconnected from the force when he doesn’t have the inner-knowing that he can co-create his world with his creator.
2. What were the seven ideas which were personally most important to you and why? List these seven ideas followed by an explanation after each one as to why it was important to you. Use personal examples from your own life.
i. Intention is a force that we all have within us and everything in the universe has intention built into it.
We leave the source of everything and can’t access the power of intention due to our ignorance, pride, and logical thinking. Animals don’t lose their ability to connect because they don’t question their intention, we have an example in ‘Paul the Octopus’ who was able to predict the outcome of all the football matches played in the finals of the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.
Disconnection from the power of intention comes from ego, or feelings of self-importance which is made up of our limiting beliefs.
I use the four steps of discipline, wisdom, love, and surrender to connect with my natural self to activate the power of intention inside me, to see myself as not being separate from the power that created me.
To shift my thoughts to higher level, I silently repeat the word “intent” or “intention” to help me get my ego out of the way now when I teach, and my performance has improved. I deliver my messages better because my spirit is made to love and surrender.
ii. Love is in every one of us.
All growth and survival comes from an energy that is the cause behind all of creation right from the time they were formless. The spiritual vibration or force that originates all life cooperates with other life forms to ensure further growth and survival. When everything on earth begins to share the same intelligence or life force which is love, all of life begins to live together in harmony and cooperating with one another. God intended all things out of love, when we begin to love, we’ll also begin to cooperate rather than compete.
The force beyond time and space holds the universe together; it makes every heart beat together as one when unloving thoughts are removed from our minds. I have to deliberately cultivate love by showing kindness in all my thoughts, words, and deeds to friends and foes alike. The idea that love is in every thing is important to me because I have learnt that no one is my enemy. The more I can extend this love, the closer I come to being love, whereby force of intention works for me and miracles begin to happen.
iii. The third idea from the book is that every interaction you have with others is an opportunity to bring higher spiritual energy to dissolve lower energies you encounter from them.
High-energy levels of kindness, love, receptivity, and abundance have the ability to overshadow lower energies of shame, anger, guilt, and so on just like a river absorbs a drop of rain. Three things you need to check every time to cultivate holy relationships with others- the first thing is the quality of your inner dialogue, the second thing is the level of your energy vibrations, and finally the demands of your ego. We become what we think. Our level of thinking determines the quality of our self-talk; low level thinking creates lower energies which are stumbling blocks in our interactions.
The above idea is so important to me because it teaches me that what people think of me or do to me is none of my business other than what I think about it and my ego. As long as I take care of my energy of vibrations, and take responsibility for what resides in my character, I will continue to dissolve lower energies in the world.
iv. Learn to die while you are still alive.
Our lives do not begin and end here on earth, we are connected to a source that is endless and made for eternity. Life is infinite, the universe is limitless, so what we are experiencing now is not life, it is a rehearsal. Our achievements and physical possessions are not life; we need to think less of them and more of our real life. Our sense of self-importance and attachment to physical things make us fear death but peace which passes all understanding is received by anyone who has learnt to die while still alive. It is easier to die while still alive than to feign ignorance of the existence of physical death as majority of people do. We are in a body that is going to die, so it is meaningless to pretend or behave as if it is not going to happen to us.
It is great to have the awareness that I can have a taste of life not limited by space and time when I die while still alive. Making this transition to infinity before my physical death has taken away my fear of death and this wonderful idea is helping me to get detached from visible things. And I am experiencing peace within me and in my interaction with people as a result.
v. Getting connected to power of intention improves your personality and relationships.
Your personality is enhanced when you decide to get connected to the power of intention to express the seven faces of intention. In Maslow’s “Hierarchy of Needs” pyramid, self-actualization is the topmost need of man, it is basically a life based on purpose.
Anything you do that brings inconvenience, pain and losses to others in order to achieve a goal is not part of your purpose. When you know you are doing the right thing, you’ll feel inspired, happy and contented and your life will be better for it. The personal expression of gratitude you receive from doing the right thing sustains you in living a life devoid of ego but filled with thoughts about your true purpose.
The way people treat you depends a lot on how you treat yourself. In other words you get treated the way you teach others to treat you. How you treat what others do to you is determined by how you think. If you think about how people had been ungrateful or abusive and other things you don’t want in your life, your thinking expands and you get more of what you don’t want.
To attract what is good, you must do what is good; as the Golden Rule says, do to others what you want them to do to you. You can’t hurt another person without hurting yourself and you can’t help another person without helping yourself, simply because all of us come from the same Source.
Thinking and acting in a way that reflects my awareness of the above idea makes me feel good, and feel God. The new personality I am developing from the above idea is helping me to cope with all kinds of relationship.
vi. Feeling successful attracts abundance.
If you change the way you look at things, the things you look at will change.
Quantum physics teaches that at the tiniest subatomic level, the actual act of observing a particle changes the particle. The way you observe your life is a determining factor in what it ultimately becomes. Expectations of what we want in life had been tainted by the limiting beliefs in our environment: “money is scarce” and “No one ever achieved that in our family” are few of the limiting beliefs we entertain.
Thoughts and feelings of success create positive vibrations which borders at the frequency of the universal supply, and abundance is created. Otherwise, resistance is created thereby inhibiting the flow of abundance into you. Thoughts like, ‘I don’t think I can do it” create a non-harmonious vibration and non-identical energy with your source and give no room for abundance. The bad reports and references surrounding you everyday are sources of negative vibrations or feelings which hinder abundance; it’s good to stop giving attention to those bad reports around you to eliminate your resistance to allowing. Instead, start creating and repeating high energy thoughts: “I am successful”, “I am abundant.”
Instead of getting myself stressed up with issues at home or at work, I engage in this self-talk to become tranquil: “Don’t take yourself so goddamn seriously” otherwise, I use the five magical words, “I intend to feel good”.
The essence of the above idea is to make me feel good always, this makes me feel God and feel successful. I have realized that all resistance melts away when I feel complete in my incompleteness, and I easily attract abundance. Daily, I engage myself in habits of meditation and gratitude to feel good not because the world is right, but I feel good because my world is right. When my world is right, sooner or later other people’s world I relate with will become right as well.
vii. Ill- health is an indication that you are disconnected from your Source.
Focusing on what is wrong, what is missing, or what is sickly is the cause of bad health. Resistance to your intention to heal and be healed is created if your inner thoughts and behavior don’t align with your Source. Everyone has the capacity to radiate high-energy thoughts of peace, joy, hope, faith, and love to counterbalance disease-producing emotions like anger, doubts, and envy. God is love; Hawkins stated that “in spontaneous recovery, there is frequently a marked increase in the capacity to love and the awareness of the importance of love as a healing factor”. Increasing your capacity to love the universe and everything you see enhances your connection to the power of intention to get healed and consequently heal others.
Love means “let go and let God”; it drives away fear, and brings peace which makes healing possible. When you let go of thoughts of resistance and let the spirit of light and love flow from your relaxed mind, healing takes place.
The above idea teaches me how heal by filling myself with good thoughts of healing and offering it to others. I need to leave low energy by having moments of silence to access higher, loving and kind vibrations. I get higher energy when I am grateful for the wholeness that is my body, when I look into the mirror everyday and smile at my face and thank God for my heart that continues to beat.
3. How will these ideas or lessons help you in a practical way, both in your daily personal life and in helping you to create a better world? If so, how?
I have decided to stop demanding, complaining, and judging anyone but to become busy creating beauty, to engage in reading, singing, writing and meditating. I have learnt the seven faces of the power of intention by heart, and I repeat them in my mind every time I want to become energized. With these, I am developing a better personality for myself and good relationships at home, at work, and with other people I relate with in the world. I don’t have to wait for others to become good but must first become the good person that I want others to be.
Prior to my waking up to a new consciousness, I take offence when people fail to live up to my expectations in their relationships with me. And they never disappointed me by refusing to impress me, while I kept sulking. With new understanding, I started to close my eyes and pretend to die while still alive to the wrong emotions people generate. I now see everyone as a creation of God that I need not judge but need to educate them to understand my own view. I have realized that I have as much to learn from people as I had to teach. Instead of reacting wrongly to any attack, I focus on sowing the value that the world needs: peace.
I had been part of the crowd that see myself as a human being having occasional spiritual experiences until my consciousness was transformed to see my eternal nature through the ideas I came across in this book. I am now in a better position to sell peace to the world through my thoughts, words and actions; this will make more people to spread the gospel of peace.
I don’t have to be the President of America before I can rule the world; I am a universal being who can direct the affairs of the world with positive thoughts in my inner world. I see it as my responsibility to co-create peace and security in the world by sending high energy thoughts into the universe.
4. Quotes: Are there brief quotes from the book which really got your attention? If so, please list and comment on them.
“My heart is broken, but it’s broken open”
The heart is tender like an egg, but the shell must break before the bird can fly. Keep your heart with all diligence so that when it is broken, then it is precisely the perfect time for you to metamorphose to an entirely new level of loving and being loved. As long as you are connected to God, the spouse who walked out of your life is part of a divine order that is unfolding. Everything has a divinely ordained schedule. You attracted what comes into your life because a man gets what he thinks about. Be the producer in your own life-play and not just an actor who’s influenced by others, so that when your heart is broken, it’s broken open.
ii. “I am here on purpose, I can accomplish anything I desire, and I can do it by being in harmony with the pervading creative force in the universe”
What we focus matters. Henry Miller stated that the moment one gives close attention to anything, even a blade of grass, it becomes a mysterious, awesome, indescribably magnificent world in itself. We attract what we focus, that is why we need to have the silent knowledge of faces of intention. One can only recognize something if one knows or had been told how it looks like. Intention cannot respond to you if you fail to recognize it. We can see the seven faces of intention if we can imagine the creativity, kindness, love, beauty, expanse, endless abundance and receptivity in the Universe.
iii) “The essence of being resides outside of any physical plane or mass of cells”
Prior to being born, we were formless; in fact everything in the visible world was formless in the realm of the spirit before manifestation. Therefore man is actually a spirit in a body. To win in the world, he only needs to manifest his original spirit-form: this is where all his power lies.
iv. “A man cannot be comfortable without his own approval” Mark Twain.
If you affirm that you are unworthy of being respected, the law of attraction sends disrespect towards you in a multitude of ways. You can disrespect your body in the way you eat, drink, dress, and walk and how you treat others. If you make an internal commitment to respect yourself, you are respecting God.
If you think of yourself as an optimist, you will think of the world with optimism. Looking at the world from a position of self love rather than hatred and criticism is your personal choice. It has nothing to do with what others may think of you, people’s wrong opinion about you don’t count. Be a light and be filled with love, then you’ll eradicate darkness and dissolve hate- the fall of selfish rulers is an indication that light overcomes darkness. To build self-respect, don’t judge others but send them a silent blessing of forgiveness and imagine them doing the same toward you. See love, kindness, and beauty in the world, the silent knowledge that you are connected to power of intent strengthens your self respect.
v. “We convince by our presence.”
Your life begins to have positive influence on others when your presence is felt by the people around you in terms of the calmness they feel. When you begin to act like a force of gravity which neither move against anything nor move itself, people begin to feel safe in your presence rather than attacked, and they feel calm rather than harassed.
To make others feel at ease in your presence, make them feel important by allowing them to feel better about themselves. Do not focus the conversation on yourself or use others to massage your ego. It is motivating and inspiring to help everyone feel purposeful and hopeful in your presence through what you say. When your communication shows love, kindness, and other values that emit higher-energy frequencies, trust and friendship are created and lower energies are dissolved. When people in your presence are made to see beauty in them, they feel inspired to become beautiful and great: People live up to what you call them. Apart from receiving inspiration, your presence should instill health in people rather than sickness; defuse their efforts to dwell on disease, ill health, and deterioration.
vi. “It is one of the most beautiful compensation of this life that no man can sincerely try to help another without helping himself.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson
As you make your journey through life, an exciting discovery to be made is that you are not separate from others but co-creators of everything you desire. You receive what you desire for others, or in other words, you attract what you are giving away. As a result, your impact on others depends on what you have in your heart. If you see in your mind only beauty and worthiness in others, you’ll have the same returned to you. Use people to get any good value you want by giving it to them first; this is possible when you see the best and highest part of them. See yourself as a soul relating with another soul in what Wayne Dyer calls “holy relationship”. Then, you will not demand from them, or insist that they please you. When you see others as spirit beings, you’ll not judge them as inferior; they are part of you and a reflection of who you are, because we all come from the same source of creation.
vii. “Nothing can stop anything from coming into your life except the resistance you place in its way”
Disallowing through fear or doubts, and attachment to things through greed are two roadblocks to good thoughts and good feelings or good emotions. Whoever is able to master the twin emotions of fear and greed will possess high-energy emotions or feelings of love, peace, or joy needed to attract abundance and success. Frustration, aggression, hatred and other feelings of failure indicate that you are not accessing the power of intention. Do you see a world that wants you to be successful or one that conspires against you? See the face of beauty in all things in the world; let your present moments activate thoughts that make you feel good because God is good, and all things He creates are good: To feel good is to feel God. Act as if all is well and the success and abundance you see in the end is already here. Speak passionately, and be blissful, these are indications that you are connected to the spirit or inspired; inspiration activates dormant forces
and abundance streams into your life.
5. Is there anything in the book that you do not understand or are unclear about, or are there ideas which you disagree with and if so, why?
There is nothing in the book that I did not understand or unclear about, and I disagree with no idea.
6. Did the book contain exercises for the reader to complete? If so, did you complete all the exercises and did you find them helpful?
The book contains exercises which I attempted and they helped me to understand the essence of the message in my life.
7. Was there anything you read in the book that you would like to comment on that was not covered in the previous questions? If so, please comment.
I have nothing else to comment about in the book.
Please rate the following questions on a scale of 1 to 10. Ten is good and one is poor.
A. How interesting was it to read? 10
B. How helpful were the contents? 10
C. How easy was it to read? 10
D. Would you recommend it to others? 10
E. What is the overall rating you would give it? 10
Unlimited Power
Assessment by Ayoade Anthony ( Nigeria)
1. What is the main idea that the author is trying to convey in the book?
The main idea in the book is how to immediately change our emotions and behaviors by changing our mentality and physical actions. It dwells on how to use our minds and bodies in the most effective way to trigger success. The book summarized the Ultimate Success Formula thus:
– Know your desired outcome
– Take action to get it
– Measure your output based on your action
– Make changes in your behaviors/actions until you get what you want.
2) What were the seven ideas which were personally most important to you and why? List these seven ideas followed by an explanation after each one as to why it was important to you. Use personal examples from your own life.
i) Beliefs determine actions
The beliefs you entertain determine your actions and in effect your success. It helps you to see what you want and energize you to get it. I find it a powerful strategy to consciously choose the beliefs that are conducive to what I want; it makes me get focused on my
desires. Once I believe I can do something, I write it as a goal and desire statements to read, it opens up the pathways to the part of my mind that potentially deliver the answer. Virgil said, “They can because they think they can.” What you choose as your belief is your choice – this consciousness is power in itself. Beliefs make the seemingly impossible become possible by creating evidence in support of the desired outcome in your mind. It is what we
tell our brain and consequently the nervous system that becomes our realities.
ii) We don’t lack resources, we only lack control over them.
Our feelings, behaviour and actions depend on the state we decide to dwell, and we have the power to change it from what we don’t want to what we want in our minds. The way we structure our internal representations which are built by our five senses of sight, sound, touch, taste, and smell determines whether we will be in good state or a bad state. Our experiences in the world are stored in the mind visually, auditorily, or kinesthetically; that means we see, hear of feel things differently and make us behave differently over the same
experience. When I was a 16 year old boy my father called me aside for discussion about my future, his words of advice triggered a change faster in my mind when I saw the benefit of passing my secondary school certificate. Each of us need to discover the different ways we represent things and how they affect us, then we can take charge of our own mind and begin to represent things in our unique empowering way. If you are visually based you can turn a bad experience into a non-issue by shrinking or darkening it in your mind to take away its power instead of putting you in a negative state. Once I discovered that I am auditory-based, I turn any experience into audio and lower or increase its volume in my mind depending on whether it is good or bad.
iii) When you know the strategy of people, you make them do what you want.
A strategy is simply a specific order of representations of our five senses – that allow us to accomplish a particular task. With great conviction and energy to pursue, you can elicit a person’s strategies in a matter of minutes. But you have to look for things you weren’t seeing before, listen for things you were not hearing before, feel things you weren’t feeling before, and ask the questions you didn’t know to ask before. You can learn how to give people what they want, and you can teach them how to do the same thing for themselves by observing which part of the nervous system (visual, auditory or kinesthetic) they use at any moment more than the other. Visually oriented people rely on the overwhelming pictures in their brain for power, so they tend to speak quickly without caring so much how they get the words out. To relate successfully with such people you need to speak up so your message matches the way their minds work. Auditory oriented people tend to be more selective about the words they use; their speech is slower, more rhythmic, and more measured. Words mean a lot to them. Kinesthetic people react primarily to feelings. They tend to have a deep voice, and describe things in details. All of us have elements of all three modes, but most people have one system that dominates. By watching people’s eyes and listening to what they say, you can know their main representational system; it is factual that “the eyes are windows to the soul” The direction people’s eye move when you ask questions relating to images, sounds, or feelings you want them to remember tells a lot about their strategy and personality. As a husband I have to sit down with my wife to find out what makes her feel totally loved. My wife has to elicit my own love strategy; and teach me how to trigger the feelings of her being totally loved; the same thing goes for the children.
iv) Good health is the foundation on which all happiness and powers depend.
There are six keys to a powerful, indomitable physiology.
Key 1: The power of breath
Of all the elements necessary for good health, oxygen is the most critical. Effective breathing oxygenates the cells in the body and determines the quality of our health. Effective way to breathe in order to clean your system of body toxins is to inhale, hold, and exhale in the ratio 1:4:2. That is, if you inhale for four counts, you would hold for sixteen counts and exhale through your mouth for eight counts. When you breathe, you should start from deep in your abdomen, like a vacuum cleaner that is getting rid of all toxins in the blood system. Learn to take 10 deep breaths, in the above ratio, at least three times a day. You should start with smaller counts you can handle and slowly develop greater lung capacity. Another method of developing healthy breathing is to do exercise with air daily or what is called aerobic exercise.
Key 2: Eat water-rich foods
70% of your diet must be water-rich, that is fresh fruits and vegetables. A salad is not a bad idea with each meal you take.
Key 3: Eat good combination of food
“Take care of your stomach for the first fifty years, and it will take care of you for the next fifty”. Some foods should not be eaten with others. Different types of foods require different types of digestive juices, and not all digestive juices are compatible. Starchy foods require an alkaline digest medium. Protein foods require an acid medium for digestion. Acid and alkali cannot work at the same time, they neutralize each other. If you eat protein with a starch: one needs an acid for digestion and the other needs an alkali. Digestion of the food combination is impaired. The reason why we feel tired waking up in the morning after eight hours sleep is that the body is working overtime to digest the incompatible combinations of food we’ve put in our stomach. Improper combination of food can take as much as 14 hours or more to digest, but proper combination takes an average of 3 – 4 hours to digest, thereby conserving one’s energy. It is noteworthy that drinking of fluid at meals dilutes the digestive juices and slows the digestive process. It is also best not to eat immediately before going to bed, other than fruit.
Key 4: Control your consumption
Eat a little and you’ll be around long enough to eat a lot.
Key 5: Have Effective Fruit Consumption
Fruit is the most perfect food but it must be consumed in a way that allows the body to use its nutrients effectively. You must always eat fruit on an empty stomach. Take fresh fruit and allow it to digest between 15 or 20 minutes before taking your meal until at least 12 noon each day. The longer you can go with just fruit in your body, the greater the opportunity for your body to cleanse itself. I feel physically stronger when I fast and break it with fruits than any other time.
Key 6: Avoid Protein
v) Goals are like magnet, they attract the things that make them come true.
You give your brain the clear message it needs to be effective when you know what you want and the things that can help you get them. When you have goals, you give your brain a clear picture of the kinds of information you want your nervous system to give high priority. You can’t hit a target if you don’t know what it is. What your mind can conceive, and believe, it will achieve, you only need to give it clear, bright, intense, focused signals. Goals come from thinking, according to Henry Ford, thinking is the hardest work there is, which is the probable reason why so few engage in it. One of the reasons people don’t do well in life is their failure to work hard, and goals setting is hard work. When I set my personal development goals, people started to invite me to participate in projects that are in line with my mission, including this IIGL course.
vi) Asking things precisely makes you get whatever you want.
There is a specific question or a precise phrase that will transform almost any problem in communication. Our goal in communication is to change direction toward desired outcome, and away from the problem. “If thought corrupts language, language can also corrupt thought” according to George Orwell in his book, “1984”. The words we use to describe experiences aren’t the experiences; they are just the best verbal representation we can come up with. The closer your map approximates the real territory, the more valuable it is. One of the measures of success is how accurately and precisely our words can convey what we want. My experience shows that the reason I have failed to get things I wanted was because I had not asked them precisely. Words can be walls, but they can also be bridges, it can either be used to link people or to divide them. Now, I use the “outcome questions” below to gain specificity and get as much useful information as possible. They help me to understand and describe my experience.
“What do I want?”
“What is the Objective?”
What am I here for?
“What do I want for you?”
“What do I want for me?”
vii) You can enter anybody’s world once you can match it by creating rapport.
People are your assets but you must know how to partner with them to achieve your objectives. Rapport is created when you create and discover things in common with people. Harmony comes from similarity, and turmoil from feelings of differences in values, beliefs, emotions, and background. You may have different ways of doing things with your friend, but the common goal you share makes him appealing. The way to go from discord to harmony is to go from concentrating on differences to concentrating on similarities. The first step in real communications is learning to understand someone’s map of the world.
The most common way to match or mirror others is through the exchange of information about each other through words. However, studies have shown that only 7 percent of what is communicated between people is transmitted through the words themselves, 38 percent come through the tone of voice, and 55 percent is a result of physiology or body language. This is why the best way to achieve rapport is through mirroring the person’s breathing pattern, posture, gestures, tonality, or creating a common physiology. Words work on a person’s conscious mind, while physiology works on the unconscious mind. An unconscious bond or attraction is more effective. Mirroring the tone of voice or facial expression of someone makes you develop an incredible rapport with him or her, and you begin to experience the same feelings, thoughts and beliefs with them. Your tone of voice may turn auditory-biased person off from the very start. And another visual-biased person may not be able to cope with a kinesthetic person who is talking very slowly about how he is feeling about something. To be a successful communicator or succeed with people, and even your family, you need to be strong in all three representational systems. You must aspire to be attractive visually; you need to develop an attractive tone of voice and manner of speaking, and possess the ability to move people emotionally with feelings. Like water changes form, rapport is a dynamic, fluid, flexible process- the ability to elegantly and accurately change gears when someone else does establishes a resonant, lasting relationship. Great communicators enter another person’s world, achieve rapport by pacing and then use that rapport to lead. To become an effective boss, I have to establish rapport with the officers under me and match their learning strategies. I make rapport as I pursue my daily events by beginning to use my eyes, ears and senses of touch to mirror people and subsequently lead them.
3) How will these ideas or lessons help you in a practical way, both in your daily personal life and in helping you to create a better world? If so, how?
These ideas give me the consciousness that I no longer belong to the crowd again and this awareness imposes the duty of sharing the knowledge with people. I used to feel insulted when people behaved in ways that were the opposite of mine until I learned that different people have different metaprograms and patterns. I now take time to know what motivates people and what frightens them off. It is good to know that I have the power to get what I want by acting as if I have it already. I can copy the physiology of successful people, that is, the combination of their posture, their facial expression, their breathing pattern, the quality of their gestures and movements, their words and their tonality to become successful. I can sit down and get a similar feeling that effective people have once I send similar signals to my brain by duplicating their physiologies in words and actions. If all of us do this, rather than stuff our brain with drugs and wrong physiologies, the world will be a safer and better place for all. It is great to know that the simple medicine we ignore is what we need to get healed.
The idea that I can identify other people’s strategies so I can know exactly what they react to and how they make decisions is helpful in avoiding conflicts everywhere. I can have rapport with anyone as long as I present information to him or her in their syntax which puts them in a resourceful state. A crucial area where understanding strategies and syntax of people can help me to make a major difference in the world is teaching and learning. As a teacher, guardian, and parent I need information on the most effective strategy for teaching or training people and youths who are future leaders. From the ideas above, I now have an accurate view of how different children learn because every human being has preferred learning strategies. It is not that the child who became a problematic adult in the world cannot learn but people have trouble teaching him in a way in which he processes information. I should not assume everyone learns the same way, but I have to teach based on individual strength- each learner has a particular neurology, a particular mental terrain that he or she uses most often. A learner processes a great deal of his experience visually, while another prefers an audio experience or the rarely used kinesthetic experience. Some pupils that the standard teaching process categorize as dullards can actually grasp what they learn very fast when it is given to them in a way they can feel. They can effectively perceive, store, and retrieve information given to them kinesthetically. Every adult is a teacher and learner, one way or the other. As I realize that the order of the signals I provide for the brain of my listeners determines whether my messages constitute “garbage” or not, my words begin to change the lives of people in the world positively. Everybody has a combination of numbers that opens the vault of his or her brain’s resources, but it must be known and used in the right sequence.
4) Quotes: Are there brief quotes from the book which really got your attention? If so, please list and comment on them.
(i) “Nothing has any power over me other than that which I give it through my conscious thoughts” -Anthony Robbins
You will be justifying yourself and empowering your wrong emotion if you ask yourself why you feel negative instead of asking how you feel negative. It takes a process to get you to the negative state, and if you change the process that gets you there, you get something other than a negative state. Remember that you are not angry or frustrated because someone genuinely offended you, but you have a towering image of what happened in your mind. And you keep talking to yourself in a disempowering tone of voice. Failure symptoms or negative emotions are simply process created by specific mental images, sounds and physical actions that you consciously or unconsciously control. Nothing makes any meaning except the meaning you give to it. By attaching pleasure to an experience you hate, it can be relabeled in your brain and immediately create a new feeling about it. By process you can also look at your problems, shrink them down and put a distance between them and you. Possibilities are endless on how to use your conscious thoughts to change your feelings to get desired outcomes.
(ii) “Things do not change, we change” – Henry David Thoreau –
Understanding our mental state is the key to understanding change and achieving excellence. Our behaviour is the result of the state we are in, that is why people aren’t their behaviors. We behave based on our belief or internal representation of what happened. If you know what you want, you can represent things inside yourself in a way that puts you in a resourceful state to take actions needed to create it. We always have the choice of how to represent things to ourselves. The message here is to make conscious efforts to always be in our resourceful state rather than being at the mercy of whatever comes our way. Human behavior and performance is the result of the state we are in; an athlete in a resourceful state will perform better than one in a poor mental state. Recently, Tiger Wood’s performance changed for the worse as a result of his bad matrimonial experience when his infidelity became known to the world, the incident changed his mental state. He had developed a series of mental blocks that seemed to be limiting him from winning golf championships as he used to do. Until he is able to tap into the most resourceful part of his mind again, he may soon find himself out of the game entirely.
(iii) “The map is not the territory; it’s only how we see the territory”.
To motivate people you must know their strategies. Every motivational technique aimed at a group should have something for strategy – visual, auditory and kinesthetic. You should not only show things, you should let them hear things, and you should give them feelings. You
should be able to vary your voice and intonations so you hook all three types. Understanding strategy is absolutely essential to success in sales since everybody has very specific buying strategies. It is needed to develop rapport, and elicit people’s decision making strategies. Most of us think what works for us works for everyone. We interact with others based on the map we have in our heads. This applies specifically to our relationships
5) Is there anything in the book that you do not understand or are unclear about, or are there ideas which you disagree with and if so, why?
There is nothing in the book that I did not understand or unclear about, and I disagree with no idea.
6) Did the book contain exercises for the reader to complete? If so, did you complete all the exercises and did you find them helpful?
The book contains exercises which I attempted and they helped me to understand the essence of its message in my life.
7) Was there anything you read in the book that you would like to comment on that was not covered in the previous questions? If so, please comment.
I have nothing else to comment about in the book.
Please rate the following questions on a scale of 1 to 10. Ten is good
and one is poor.
A. How interesting was it to read? 8
B. How helpful were the contents? 10
C. How easy was it to read? 8
D. Would you recommend it to others? 10
E. What is the overall rating you would give it? 9
GOALS!
Assessment by Ayoade Anthony ( Nigeria)
1. What is the main idea that the author is trying to convey in the book?
The book is about goal-setting methodology and process: how regular and systematic practice of specific ideas and strategies can take one from poverty to prosperity, from frustration to fulfillment, from underachievement to success and satisfaction.
2. What were the seven ideas which were personally most important to you and why? List these seven ideas followed by an explanation after each one as to why it was important to you. Use personal examples from your own life.
i) You have the power to create your own future.
The ability to think several years in the future while making decision in the present is the most important determination of success in life. The more you see the end from the beginning, the better decision you will make in the present to bring the end into reality. The clearer you can be about your long-term future, the more rapidly you will attract people and circumstances into your life to help make that future a reality in every area.
To create your own future you must clarify your values. If you don’t stand for anything, you’ll fall for everything. And you can’t stand for anything if you either don’t know who you are or you don’t have personal principles. Fewer abilities and opportunities can take you farther than others who lack good values inside them. Your values inside determine your personality or who you are outside. For example, if your value is love you will believe that people deserve being loved and you will treat them accordingly
ii) Your own fears and doubts are your biggest road block to success.
80 percent of the constraint you face comes from within you and 20 percent of it is external, contained in other people and situation. An average person finds it difficult to accept, and it is the reason why they remain average – they can’t identify the source of their problems. Average people are concerned about who is right than what is right. Regardless of who is right, successful people are interested in doing what is right. Look into yourself to identify what is holding you back – your personality, temperaments, skills, abilities, habits, education, and experience.
The primary constraint in achieving any goals is usually a mental block. They are psychological and emotional in character: the two major ones are fear and doubt. According to Brian Tracy, the keys to fear and doubt are courage and confidence. The more you do something you feared before, the more you become confident.
80 percent of people created for themselves what Dr. Martin Seligman called “learned helplessness.” They’ve learnt to see their situation as helpless, so they have an excuse for every failure and, “if you believe you can do a thing or you believe you cannot, in either case, you are probably right” so said Henry Ford.
Apart from doubts and my fear of the future if I leave paid employment, another mental block for me is the trap of the “comfort zone” which I am addressing by setting big challenging goals. My main challenge is how to feed my family in the absence of a steady income and I am trying to discuss the accuracy of the problem with a knowledgeable person whom I trust.
iii) Your career is affected by the character of the people with whom you associate daily.
The quickness at which you achieve your goals is dependent on your ability to form the right relationships with the right people at every stage of your life and career. One person who knows you in a positive way can open a door for you that can change your life and save you years of hard work.
Identify the people, groups, and organizations whose help you will need to achieve your set-goals. These are the people in and around your business, your family and friends, and people in groups and organizations outside your business or social circle. You need the skills to relate with everyone inside and outside of your business – these are your customers.
I have made a list of people who have the greater ability to help me in the achievement of my goals. I look for ways to be a valuable resource to them, and they will also help me when the need arises. I deliberately join mentoring groups and look for every opportunity to volunteer for assignments. I believe that the more positive values I give with no expectation of return, the more that will come back to me from the most unexpected sources.
iv) Much of what you do can be eliminated with no consequence at all.
If you don’t get your time under control, it will get you out of control. Psychologists believe that a “Sense of control” is the key to feeling of happiness, confidence, power, and personal well-being. You can go from confusion to clarity and from frustration to focus by developing habit of time management. If planning makes you do the right things, time-management makes you efficient in the task. You may make good decisions or see beyond the obvious and plan very well, but if you don’t know how to manage yourself, your goals in every area of life may not be accomplished. Time management requires spending your time on important tasks which has to do with accomplishment of your goals than urgent tasks in the form of telephone calls, interruptions, emergencies and the demands of people. To set priorities, you can use the 80/20 Rule or the ABCD method.
In your list of tasks for the coming day, apply 80/20 Rule which says that 20 percent of the tasks will account for 80 percent of the value of all of your activities. Focus your time and attention on identifying and completing those one or two tasks that can make the most difference and procrastinate only on the remaining.
The ABCDE method requires you to put an, A,B,C,D, or E next to each task to be accomplished for the day. An “A” task is one whose completion or non completion can have a major impact on your results and your success. If you have more than one “A” task, organize them by priority, as A-1, A-2, A-3 and so on.
Successful person has a single-minded concentration on his A-1 task until it is completed.
A “B” task is one whose completion or non completion may cause some inconveniences, but the consequences for your life are minor. It includes calling a friend or checking your e-mail.
A “C” task is a task that would be nice to do but will have no consequences at all in your life or work. Chatting with co-workers, reading the paper and going shopping are all “C” tasks. A “D” task is something that you can delegate to people. Look for more things to delegate so as to have more time to devote to your “A” tasks. An “E” task is something that you can eliminate altogether. They include old activities that are no longer in agreement with your new values.
Every night I prepare a to-do-list in advance. I have learnt that making a list of my next day activities makes the subconscious mind work on the list all night long, to give ideas on how to accomplish them. The written plan activates the Law of Attraction which attracts into my life the people and opportunities I need to complete the tasks.
v) Whatever the mind of man can conceive, and believe, it can achieve.
Every successful man and woman had reiterated the power of visualizing goals continually as one of the factors of success. Imagination, they say is more important than facts and it rules the world. Everything worthwhile begins with a mental picture, and as it happens you can see the success you desire with the visualizing capacity of your mind. You now need to learn how to take control of the process to make your mind get focused on what you want to be, to do and to have all areas of life.
Visualization has to do with frequency and other factors, that is, duration, vividness and intensity; and the two best periods to practice are late in the evening, and early in the morning.
“Casualness brings Casualties” If you don’t have a clear picture of what you want, you end up getting something else. You cannot hit a target that you cannot see, but if you are absolutely clear about what you want, you will get it.
To get what you want faster than you ever thought possible, you need to know how to activate your super conscious mind. It operates best when you are in a mental state of calm, confident, relaxed expectation.
I practice relaxation in solitude, completely letting go of all my cares and sitting quietly or communing with nature to make my super- conscious mind function. I make what I want very clear to my “super mind” and then wait calmly with confident trust that the exact answer will come to me at exactly the time I am ready for it.
vi) In a time of rapid change, flexibility is the best important habit for success and happiness.
Today, change is rapid and random such that you can’t predict what might happen next. As a result, we have to remain flexible in our thinking and in our possible courses of action. Many have exposed themselves to risks and unnecessary stress due to their rigid thinking. If any idea or belief you hold does not work again, drop it fast and get the one that’ll help you achieve your goal.
Three factors drive change today, and they multiply one another to increase the speed of change. The first one is the explosion of information and knowledge in every area of our lives. A single news, event, idea or knowledge can help you or hurt you in the achievement of your goals. To remain flexible you must be constantly alert to information. The power is always on the side of the one with the best and most current information.
The second factor driving change is the rapid growth of new technology. It applies to your products, your services, your processes, and your sales strategies. Every new technology today has a shelf life of six months before it is replaced by something that will do the job faster and cheaper. Success in any area can breed complacency and a reluctance to change in response to the new realities of the marketplace. Remember, success is a process, not an event, so you must keep moving because nothing fails like success.
Competition is the third element driving change which requires your flexibility. Your competitors are aggressively using new information and technology to render you obsolete and to gain a competitive advantage. You must not be afraid or full of pride to start all over again if there is anything you need to change. It is called the “Zero-based thinking.” Your ability to say, “I was wrong” bestows wisdom rather than foolishness on you on the long run. Many individuals and companies would have survived their afflictions if they had learnt to admit their obvious mistakes. In a time of rapid change in knowledge, technology, and competition, it is a mark of courage, wisdom, and flexibility to be willing to “cut your losses” quickly and face reality in everything you do. You can’t deceive anyone except yourself on the long run. Face the world as it is, not as you wish it were or as it used to be. Refuse to be surprised when events don’t work
out the way you expect.
I have learnt that flexibility is needed in my relationships with important people in my life. Now, I am ready to admit being wrong, and I am open to differing points of view and different ideas of other people. A little child is calm, confident, and curious because he is flexible and open- minded. I believe that developing and applying this attitude to other areas of my life apart from my relationships will enhance the process of achieving my goals.
vii) Creativity is a natural ability which must be exercised for it to grow.
It had been established that on average people use just one percent or two percent of the capacity of their brain in an entire lifetime. Whoever uses four percent of his mental potential will become a leader in his chosen field.
95% children between three and five years of age were rated as highly creative when tested. Only 5 percent of these children are however rated as highly creative when tested again as teenagers. Circumstances have killed their creativity as they grow up; they were forced to go along if they want to get along. They have to do common things in common ways in their attempts to belong, and like a fire without fuel, their creativity died down.
Creativity must be exercised for it to grow by generating ideas. It activates more neurons and dendrites in the brain, creating more and more connections and interconnections, and enhancing better thinking. One good idea for adding value is all you need to start a fortune. Creativity can be increased by asking questions.
An average person who is more methodical can run circles around highly intelligent people who face problems without a method for solving them.
A powerful creative thinking exercise is called “Scenario planning” whereby you imagine what might happen sometime in the future. Completely unexpected events will arise that will require you to change your plan completely. All of us can remember the global economic meltdown that shook the world in 2008. Stock markets even in a developing country like Nigeria crashed and I happened to be a victim. But I know very few people who pulled out of the market because they saw it coming. There are two questions which they probably asked which I did not know. First, “What are the three worst things that could possibly happen in the months or years ahead that would negatively affect my business or my personal life?” Be correct with yourself and refuse to hope for the best as you write them down. Next, ask yourself, “What are the three best things that could possibly happen to me in the months and years ahead? Use the mind- storming technique stated earlier to generate twenty answers for the two questions. The more you think about these key questions, the more you activate your subconscious mind to give you insights and flashes of inspiration that will enable you to seize opportunities or avoid danger. Avoid being trapped with only one course of action open to you. You should always have a plan B for the important parts of your business and personal life as well. The more options you have, the greater mental freedom you have and the greater power and confidence you will have in any situation. Freedom to choose is one of the naturally endowed ability of man; use your creativity to develop choices continually, no matter how well things are going at the moment.
Lastly, learn to use your creativity to add value by doing things faster, better, cheaper, or easier in some way. You always get rewarded for the service you render better than others, and this is the true hallmark of personal genius.
3. How will these ideas or lessons help you in a practical way, both in your daily personal life and in helping you to create a better world? If so, how?
Fears and doubts are the biggest roadblocks to success which can be addressed by having what the psychologist refer to as focus of control or emotional stability. By having internal focus of control or goals, I feel confident, competent and powerful than those who are controlled by wrong external events in the world. If I don’t have any good thing to control, something else will control me. The more I accept responsibility and feel in control, the happier I become and the more I have the drive and determination to set and achieve bigger positive goals. Setting goals give me a sense of meaning and purpose in life which I need to overcome fear and doubts. As I move toward my goals I feel happier and stronger, I feel more competent and confident in my ability to achieve bigger goals. The fact that I am doing something that is moving me toward something that I want makes me experience a positive self-image, and increased happiness. And only a happy person
is energetic and healthy to contribute positively to make the world a better place.
Creativity can be exercised and made to grow. The world is in need of creative people who can think out of the box, and do common things in uncommon ways. Apart from using the mind-storming technique and scenario-planning to enhance my creativity, I have to let other people know about these ideas in my messages at various forums.
4. Quotes: Are there brief quotes from the book which really got your attention? If so, please list and comment on them.
i) “Realize what you really want. It stops you from rehearsing butterflies and puts you to work digging gold”. – William Marsden.
Successful people invest the time necessary to know who they are and what they need. Others are like a dog chasing a passing car; what can it do with the vehicle even if it catches up with it? We don’t have to wonder why many people never seem to catch anything or keep anything worthwhile- they pursue what they want, not what they need.
ii) “Goals are the fuel in the furnace of achievement” – Tom Hopkins
Goals determine where we are going which is determined by ourselves and our own imaginations. The essence of setting goals is to increase our confidence, develop our competence, and boost our levels of motivation.
iv) “The stairs are always open”
We have to climb the stairs to get to the top, just as we have to pay the price of success first before we start enjoying it. Life is more like a buffet or cafeteria than a restaurant, we have to serve ourselves and pay in full before we enjoy the meal. No one will make things happen, we have to provide the matches to light our own torch.
v) “A man, as a general rule, owes very little to what he is born with – a man is what he makes of himself.” – Alexander Graham –
For our situation to be different, we would have to be different by refusing to justify our negativity or rationalize our mistakes. A cause of failure is to be too concerned about how people treat us; we must know that no one can make us inferior without our consent. The important thing is to keep our minds positive by refusing to criticize, complain or condemn other people for things we can neglect. We need to accept complete responsibility for our situation, and every thing that happens to us.
vi) “Fake it until you make it!”- Brian Tracy
The above statement may look cheap, but there is a lot of truth to it. The Law of Reversibility in psychology agrees that you can act your way into feeling successful. Your action generates feelings that go with what you believe about yourself. Pick someone who had achieved what you want and use them as your role model, when you start to walk, talk, dress, and behave like the top people, you soon begin to feel like the top people. You will treat other people like the top people do, and in no time, you will be one of the top people yourself. A real story that teaches this idea is that of a sales manager who insists that his new salesman must buy a new Cadillac as a condition of employment. Usually within a few days of starting work, the new manager will begin to see himself as a big money earner in his field and almost without fail, he becomes a sales hero.
vii) “There are never any traffic jams on the extra mile”
The top belongs to a few people who have gone the extra mile, and the bottom is wide enough to contain as many people as possible who fight for the crumble that falls from the top. It had been stated factually that you will always be compensated in life in direct proportion to what you do after you do what you are expected to do.
viii) “Adversity has the effect of drawing out strength and qualities of a man that would have lain dormant in its absence.” – Herodotus
Your talent, education or what you know alone cannot make you win other than your ability to face challenges. The very best qualities of humility, courage, respect and persistence are brought out in you when you face your greatest challenges positively. Persistence is one single thread which connects all activities of success together.
You need self-discipline to be proactive in the face of challenges, and this is where persistence comes in – the true measure of individual human character. It is the real measure of your belief in yourself and your ability to succeed. Every challenging experience in every area of life you handled well builds up your confidence.
There will always be something to fear, but great people feel the fear and persist anyway. “If you do not do the thing you fear”, Glenn Ford said, “the fear controls your life.” So you have to sit down and take the time to objectively identify, define and analyze your own personal fear. Sometimes you may only need to take a vacation to rest and relax to build your courage and confidence.
ix) “Stick to the fight when you’re hardest hit – it’s when things seem worst that you must not quit.”
Persistence is a state of mind in which you know exactly what you want and you are fully determined not to quit until you find it. The higher and more challenging the goals you set for yourself, the more disappointment and adversity you will experience. This is the parable of life: our greatest adversity which we try to avoid gives us our greatest lesson and strength that we need to get to the top. It is note worthy that success usually comes one step beyond the point where everything inside you wants to quit. Your ability to stick with it longer than anyone else when every thing in you wants to stop and rest or go back and do something else is the only guarantee for your success.
x) “If you want to fly with the eagle, you can’t continue to scratch with the turkeys.” – Zig Ziglar
The association you belong determines where you are going, no matter how nice they are; you cannot afford to spend your time with people who are going nowhere in their lives. In short, you have to be selfish in selecting whom to associate with.
5. Is there anything in the book that you do not understand or are unclear about, or are there ideas which you disagree with and if so, why?
There is nothing in the book that I did not understand or unclear about, and I disagree with no idea.
6. Did the book contain exercises for the reader to complete? If so, did you complete all the exercises and did you find them helpful?
The book contains exercises which I attempted and they helped me to understand the essence of its message in my life.
7. Was there anything you read in the book that you would like to comment on that was not covered in the previous questions? If so, please comment.
I have nothing else to comment about in the book.
Please rate the following questions on a scale of 1 to 10. Ten is good and one is poor.
A. How interesting was it to read? 8
B. How helpful were the contents? 10
C. How easy was it to read? 8
D. Would you recommend it to others? 10
E. What is the overall rating you would give it? 9
Non-Violent Communication
Assessment by Ayoade Anthony (Nigeria)
1. What is the main idea that the author is trying to convey in the book?
The book is on how to use the skills and consciousness of NVC (Non-Violent Communication) to have good inner communication, by thinking in terms of what we need and what we feel. It teaches how to have successful outer communication with people by thinking in terms of what they need and what they feel, whereby everyone begins to live an enriched life.
2. What were the seven ideas which were personally most important to you and why? List these seven ideas followed by an explanation after each one as to why it was important to you. Use personal examples from your own life.
i) To give from the heart, we must learn to identify and express how we are feeling.
People are not compassionate in communication because they don’t know how to identify their feelings, much less expressing it. In my own 18 years of schooling only one teacher ever asked me how I felt, and strangely in my last year at the university. I can never forget that experience when he said: I have been observing your attentiveness in my class. What are your feelings about this course?” I wish I had had that experience in the primary school.
We are only trained to think in terms of what the authority says we should do. Our feelings are simply considered not important in the scheme of things by those above us and we simply do the same thing when those of us below get to the same position. The society is filled with people with heavy dose of unexpressed feelings. It is no surprise we have so much challenges in our homes, in governments and other institutions. People don’t know how to become aware of their feelings, let alone express them. This challenge is common among some people whose professional codes discourage them from manifesting emotions. My own environment discourages people from communicating emotions openly, and I am still learning how to establish the emotional connection I would have liked with people.
We have more words to express our bad feelings than good feelings because we tend to see wrong things easily than good things. A child; for example hears himself criticized for behaving like a truant; he feels frustrated and keeps doing the same thing, thereby confirming the speaker’s words.
The speaker’s feelings and desires are not brought to the receiver’s attention because the latter is made to focus on the judgmental statement only. And the critical statement leads to self-fulfilling prophecy rather than invitation from the speaker to connect the receiver to the speaker.
I share the sentiments of M.B. Rosenburg: The benefits of strengthening our feelings vocabulary are evident not only in intimate relationships but also in the professional world. The truth is that people find it difficult to express their vulnerability thinking that it is a sign of weakness. Personally, I’ve made a list of feelings that I can use for different situations to express my vulnerability. It helps a lot in connecting more with people and in mending fences and resolving conflicts when we increase our power to articulate our feelings and when we clearly describe a whole range of our emotional states.
Our failure to identify and express how we are feeling stems from our inability to distinguish between what we actually feel and what we think we are.
ii) Power of empathy
We show empathy when we express ourselves more vulnerably and honestly, but those who appear to possess more power, status or resources find it difficult to do. At the particular moment I am writing this book report, my country, Nigeria, is losing billions of dollars due to the national strike by workers who are protesting the hike in pump price of petrol by the government. This stemmed from the reluctance of our leaders to express their vulnerability and honesty that can make the people to empathize with them. Our rulers want to maintain a “tough image” for fear of losing authority or control which will be lost ultimately if they fail to do the right thing -as it happened in Egypt, Libya, and other African countries in 2011.
To deal with people’s hurtful behavior we need to offer ourselves some empathy or to request it from a reliable source. It is needed to go beyond the thoughts occupying our heads and recognize our deeper needs. Instead of judging people for causing us pain, we focus on hearing their pain and the unmet needs behind their behavior. When we listen for feelings and needs we no longer see people as difficult. Ironically, it is difficult to listen to feelings and needs of those who are closest to us than others. Familiarity makes us take so many things for granted.
The ability to empathize with their listeners made Winston Churchill and Martin Luther King great speakers. They engage in an exchange of life energy with their listeners through their words. They speak with consciousness of what they are feeling, needing or requesting and the consciousness of what others feel and need.
Without empathy, it is difficult for us to express our vulnerability to defuse tension, to communicate well, to revive a lifeless communication, and hear the feelings and needs expressed through silence.
iii) Anger is a wake- up call to our unmet needs
Violence, whether physically or emotionally are all superficial expressions of our unmet needs. It is not the provocation that angered the murderer to kill but what he thinks- thoughts of blame and judgment he has towards the victim. Our communication reveals that we try to do what is right because we don’t want to feel guilty. We also like to make others feel guilty when they do what we think is not right to us. We fail to recognize our unmet needs and values as the cause of our anger or feelings. We think that what we lack physically or what others do to us is the reason behind our actions or feelings. But we have to know that our own personal opinions must never be confused with facts. And the fact or sacred truth is that the cause of anger is our choice: for example the cause of anger is our choice to blame the other person for being wrong. This is located in our thinking in our head; but if we go to our heart, we will discover our unmet inner needs that made us angry. We can also beam our searchlight on the other person’s unmet feelings and needs. At the core of a wrong behavior is a need that is not being fulfilled which we don’t know, and as it happens this is the cause of unstable relationships.
Rather than focus on the sins committed by other person, we serve life better by focusing attention on what we need. We become the same thing like the offender and contribute to wrong behavior or violence if we use our perception to judge others. It is not what the other person does, but the images and interpretations in my own head that produce anger.
Our desire is to have our needs fulfilled, but that will not happen when our own heads are filled with judgments and analysis that others are bad. Someone who had been judged is not likely to be interested in our needs. Unfortunately our culture makes us have the wrong belief that is possible to change people by intimidating them to meet our needs. But the more people hear blame and judgment the more defensive and aggressive they become and the less they will care about our needs in the future
The more we seek to understand other’s needs first, the more likely it is that they reciprocate afterwards. The more we hear people’s pain the more they’ll hear our pain.
We don’t enjoy our relationships with people because we often hear what they think! But we enjoy our everyday living by hearing what’s going on in people’s hearts and not getting caught up with the stuff in their heads.
If we listen with our heads to what people say from their heads, we will blame them, and when people hear blame they fail to hear our pain. It is easy to blame and people are used to hearing blame. But our need is for the other person to truly hear our pain, not our blame. If we sense that blame is being traded in our conversation with people we may need to slow down, go back, and hear their pain for a while more. People may agree sometimes with the blames and hate themselves, but it doesn’t stop them behaving the same way again. And sometimes they may hate us for blaming them – it also doesn’t stop their bad behavior.
Our conditioning has made our behavior automatic, and it is initially difficult to change old habits. Due to our experience and background, judging and blaming have become our second nature. To practice NVC, we need to proceed slowly, think carefully before we speak, and often take a deep breath and not speak at all. We need to take our time both in learning and in applying the process of NVC.
Every act of judgment me make in respect of people’s action is a result of an unmet need. We have to begin to train ourselves to frame our thinking in terms of our unmet needs rather than in terms of judging other people.
I have a child who does not tidy up his room as expected, and this had led to expressions of anger towards him on many occasions. I am now aware that I had been talking in terms of what is wrong with him rather than what I need to enrich our lives. To address the problem, I now begin to talk in terms of the human needs we share: healthy lifestyle, self-worth, and trust. This action became more productive than all my previous steps.
iv) When we become aware of our needs, bad feelings give way to life – serving feelings.
If we don’t know what we need we can’t be stimulated toward creative possibilities for how to get the need met.
We need the ability to separate what we lack outside ourselves from what we really need inside us. It is what we really need inside us which we don’t know that causes our wrong communication in words, thoughts and action. We should not blame people for our wrong feelings because we are the source of it.
Beyond what well-intentioned people in our lives think is good for us; we need to find time to identify what we really need by ourselves – is it relationships, joy, peace, honesty, love, faith, hope, strength, courage, appreciation, growth, security? A person who doesn’t know what he is living for can never find anything. To have the right response, he has to ask: How can my needs be met, and where do I focus my attention?
Human beings are supposed to live without borders, but our well-intentioned parents, teachers and loved one have taught us things that limit us. It takes transformation of our consciousness to rewrite the program in our mind. It requires what M.B Rosenberg calls a “literacy of needs” and the ability to get in touch with our real self. Masses of people have neither being trained nor encouraged to develop awareness of their own needs. Followers are obligated to serve the needs of their leaders in every relationship: parents and children, government and workers, husbands and wives etc. Otherwise, the follower will be labeled ‘uncultured and selfish’. As “followers” we are encouraged to only evaluate what we observe and not to express the thoughts or needs that cause our feelings.
People fail to express their requests in clear action language, in order not to be seen as selfish or needy. This is cultural conditioning that influences the destructive learning we grew up with. A person who does not know how to freely express his or her feelings and needs will have internal conflicts that often result in depression and actions that are of no service to life. Such a man has judgmental internal dialogue or negative inner messages which alienates him from what he needs, much less acting to meet those needs. Therefore, the ability to hear our own feelings and needs and empathize with them can free us from depression.
The essence of NVC is to encourage us to focus on what we truly need rather than what is wrong with others or ourselves. When we think someone had offended us, we look for punitive actions which may not be immediate; and in the process we have the anger lodged inside us to exact its toll. To overcome this challenge, we develop empathy for ourselves by translating whatever judgment we have into personal feelings and needs rather than blaming people. When we have empathy for ourselves, we can empathize with others.
Revealing our vulnerability concerning what we need instead of judging people and empathizing with them rather than interpreting their actions will make us overcome bad feelings. We have been offended severally before, and everyone is “walking wounded” – this accounts for the challenges in relating with ourselves. To address this problem, we can ask questions: What am I feeling about this person or this situation, and what needs of mine are behind my feelings? What can I request this person to do that will make him or her happy or be of service to life? Additionally, we empathize with people rather than interpreting them by asking: What is this person feeling? What does he or she need? When we avoid diagnosing people and instead stayed connected to life going on in them and in ourselves, we can have genuine, open, and mutual encounters with ourselves.
v) Appreciation is to celebrate the way our lives have been enriched by others
Non-violent communication NVC ensures that the intention behind every appreciation is to celebrate the way our lives have been enriched by others. Appreciation can be life-alienating when it is expressed in a judgmental form, when it is used to manipulate people’s behavior or get something in return. The conventional compliments we give people often take the form of judgments, however positive. Examples of such statements:
“You are a nice person”
”I love the way you give your reports”
This kind of appreciation may work for some time, but once people sense the manipulation behind the appreciation, it becomes meaningless. In NVC showing appreciation to someone requires three components if it is to be used to celebrate others
· What the person did that enriches us
· What we feel for our need that was met.
· What is our need that was met
Apart from the way we express appreciation, we can also use NVC to receive appreciation. We are sometimes nervous about living up to the appreciation we receive because our culture has taught us that people appreciate in order to manipulate the behavior of others. As a result, the masses of people receive appreciation and evaluate it from one of two polar positions. At one end is the feeling of superiority. And at the other extreme is false humility in respect of the appreciation: “Oh, it was no big deal”
However, NVC teaches that we can receive appreciation with the feeling of joy that we are being used by God to enrich the lives of others. We don’t need to dwell on our human frailties to put up false humility while receiving appreciation. Despite our unease in receiving appreciation, most of us yearn to be genuinely recognized and appreciated. The real cause of our depression, anger and other bad feelings is that people only recognize what we do wrong rather than appreciate what we do right. So, when we see someone who genuinely expresses appreciation, we need not receive it with false humility or feeling of superiority, instead we celebrate along with the person. As stated earlier, our beliefs and references had taught us that people endlessly search for improvement, while barely stopping to celebrate things that are going well. Such limiting belief had rubbed off on us that we become uneasy to either express appreciation or receive it.
Our destructive cultural learning makes receiving and expression of appreciation look embarrassing to us, and we can even sense our own resistance to the great habit. Too often we assume that others know the intensity of our appreciation for them and fail to give it, only to discover that in their hearts they want us to verbalize it.
vi) Change comes when we become the change we wish to see in the world.
Probably the most important use of NVC is in developing self compassion. When we are internally violent towards ourselves, it is difficult to be genuinely compassionate towards others. The way we’ve been trained to evaluate ourselves promotes more self hatred than learning. But we can use NVC to evaluate ourselves in ways that engender growth rather than self hatred, and peace rather than fear. Peace cannot be built on the foundation of fear.
Fighting, killing, beating and disobedience to law happened in January, 2012 in Nigeria over the withdrawal of subsidy on petrol by the federal government. NVC studies reveal that this violence had been in those rioters passively as emotional hurts before it manifested physically. The law- breakers are ignorant of the existence of these hurts and how to deal with it through NVC, so they ended up responding with physical violence. But to extinguish a fire, the fuel that ignites the inferno must first be cut off. The emotional needs of people must be supplied before they can embrace peace. Nigerian leaders want their followers to accept a new pump- price of petrol, but they want to force it down their throat and found out that it wasn’t a play. The leaders wanted their people to tighten their belts, but refused to show the same commitment for their followers to see. The body language of the government is different from their words -they refuse to reflect the change they are seeking and their integrity was called to question by the people.
vii) Punitive action destroys and protective action builds.
The assumption behind the protective use of force is that people are ignorant and need to be educated. Protective action enhances goodwill. The more we are seen as being protective of other’s lives, rights, and well being, the easier it is for them to respond to our needs compassionately. Here we take responsibility for our own action and are aware that our well being and that of others are one and the same.
Punitive action is based on the assumption that people commit offense because they are bad or evil; and to correct the situation they need to be made to repent by suffering enough to see the errors of their ways. Unfortunately it breeds resentment and hostility and reinforce resistance to change. Punitive actions include: physical punishment, judgmental labeling, withholding of privileges (allowances, care or respect)
The above principle is helpful in addressing the challenges I faced concerning my child who does not read her books as often as I expected. I decided to have this empathic communication with her: I’m sensing that you’re feeling hesitant to read because you need to play. After stating my observation and she agrees I expressed my feelings and needs thus, I am not happy because I want us to play in such a way that will lead to success. I’d like you to tell me if you’d be willing to listen to me on ways to play and become more responsible. From this conversation we had, I could sense that the protective action approach helped me to understand her problems and what can be done about them. It worked better than the punitive actions I had been using.
3) How will these ideas or lessons help you in a practical way, both in your daily personal life and in helping you to create a better world? If so, how?
The world will become better when we have people who are willing to give from the heart. One of the lessons I gained from this book is how to give from the heart to make me become a knowledgeable worker, parent, and boss. When I know how to identify and express my feelings and what I need, it becomes easy for me to give from the heart, and contribute meaningfully to my environment. Developing the power of empathy makes me cope with challenges in my place of work, at home and everywhere. When I become empathic in my communication with others, they can learn to become empathic, and when the world has more empathic people, it becomes a better place to live for everyone.
I have learnt that showing one’s vulnerability is a sign of strength rather than weakness contrary to what the majority of people think. The world is full of conflicts because we have a situation whereby the weak wants to be seen as strong by hiding their vulnerability. The lesson I acquired in this book has opened my eyes to see that to be strong is really to become weak to the weak. I can now understand the reason why we have challenges of leadership in the world today: we have leaders who are weak against the strong, but are strong against the weak. The challenge before me is to start being honest with myself and in my relationships with others; and to teach others these ideas, to make the world become better.
One of the reasons for my bad feelings and consequent bad behavior which has not made me serve the world is lack of awareness of my real needs. I will begin to show life – serving feelings by practicing these ideas and lessons, and by revealing them to others.
Change comes when I become the change I wish to see in the world. To become the change that I wish to see in the world, I must change by using these ideas to build good relationships and develop good personality. Mahatma Ghandi, Abraham Lincoln, and Nelson Mandela had non- violent approach in creating a better world. For me to be like any of these great men, I must discard the belief that my pains are caused by other people, and therefore deserved being punished. I have to stop playing the blame game on myself and others in the face of challenges, but use the opportunity to sense my own feelings and needs, andsense other’s feelings and needs.
4) Quotes: Are there brief quotes from the book which really got your attention? If so, please list and comment on them.
i) “Do not judge and you will not be judged. For as you judge others, so you will yourselves be judged” – Holy Bible.
We don’t flow in compassion because we are busy analyzing and judging others and their behavior based on what we think is good or bad, reasonable or unreasonable. And we believe that “bad” ones deserve to be punished. We force people to agree with our analysis of their wrongness, and they do so out of fear, guilt, or shame. This is why any change they seem to produce is ephemeral. But “analyses of others are actually expressions of our own needs and values.” It leads to value judgments – a reflection of our beliefs of how life can best be served. This further leads to moralistic judgments on our part and the need to punish others for our own value judgments.
ii) “Observe!!! There are few things as important, as religious, as that” – Frederick Buechner
What someone did is not as important as how we react to it. We can observe that someone has done something that makes us feel hurt but we will confuse issues if we call him or her irresponsible. When we combine observation with evaluation, people are apt to hear criticism and thus resist whatever we are saying. It is not as if we can’t evaluate, but the evaluations are to be based on observations specific to time and context. For example, it is better to say, “Most people are not honest enough to fulfill the promises they make” rather than to say, “People are bad”
We are observing and evaluating when we saw someone sitting down and meditating and we assumed that person is lazy due to our ignorance and limited experience.
We saw a child doing something we can’t understand and we called him stupid- we evaluate him based on our own experience. The Indian philosopher J. Krishnamurti once remarked that observing without evaluating is the highest form of intelligence. If we think this is wrong, we must realize that we have made another evaluation. For most of us, it is difficult to make observations, especially of people and their behavior, without judging and criticizing, but to give from the heart, we must observe without evaluating or make static generalizations.
iii) “People are disturbed not by things, but by the view they take of them.” – Epictetus
What others do is not the cause of our feelings; it may only be the stimulus. Our feelings come from how we choose to receive what others say and do, as well as from our unmet needs in that moment. Consequently we have to accept responsibility for what we do to cause our own feelings. We have four options in viewing things we hear.
· Blame ourselves
· Blame others
· Sense our own feelings and needs
· Sense other’s feeling and needs.
What we feel is as a result of what we need, so we must always connect what we feel with what we need. For example a mother tells her child, “I feel disappointed when you don’t take your medicine, because I want you to grow up strong and healthy.”
To give from the heart we must avoid attributing the responsibility for our own feelings to others. According to Rosenberg, when parents say, “it hurts mummy and daddy when you get poor grades at school,” they are attributing the responsibilities for their own happiness or unhappiness to the child. If the child decides to change, it is done to please the parents who are suffering or acting to avoid guilt rather than the child acting from the heart.
iv) “We no longer make good slaves when we are in contact with our own feelings and needs.”
At the root of any feeling we have is an unmet need that had not been identified at that particular time. We judge others because we fail to express an unmet need to them, which could have been met. We can become better parents, for example, if we talk to our children about what we need rather than condemning them. The possibility of finding ways to meet everybody’s needs is greatly increased when we talk about what we need rather than what’s wrong with one another. It will also do us a world of good if we are conversant with some of the basic human needs we all share.
We live in a world where we are often judged harshly for identifying and revealing our needs, therefore people in minorities and women choose to ignore their own needs. People no longer know how to express their needs, they only go about expressing what they should get or deserve to get. But they never ask directly for what they needed. People are wary of asking for their need s because they are used to getting “no” for an answer.
v) “The more faithfully you listen to the voice within you, the better you will hear what is happening outside.” – Dag Hammarskjöld – Former UN Secretary General.
If we lack empathy for ourselves we cannot give it to others. We need empathy to give empathy. When we sense ourselves being defensive or unable to empathize, we need to stop, have deep breath, and give ourselves empathy. We may also scream non violently by calling attention to our own desperate needs and pain in the moment, or take ourselves out from the situation to acquire the empathy we need to return in a different frame of mind.
Often it is difficult for us to identify what we want in a situation, even though we may know what we do not want. The more we don’t know how to express our feelings and needs precisely to ourselves, the more we don’t connect compassionately or emotionally with ourselves. It is common to hear children and adults say “I’m fine”, or “things are good/bad”, when asked about how they feel. The words- fine, good, bad, are used when people have not identified the specific emotion they are experiencing and so they lack emotional connection with themselves and others. Many of us never realize our “illiteracy of emotions” until we die. We can’t hear what is happening outside when we can’t even hear what is inside us.
5) Is there anything in the book that you do not understand or are unclear about, or are there ideas which you disagree with and if so, why?
There is nothing in the book that I did not understand or unclear about, and I disagree with no idea.
6) Did the book contain exercises for the reader to complete? If so, did you complete all the exercises and did you find them helpful?
The book contains exercises which I attempted and they helped me to understand the essence of its message in my life.
7) Was there anything you read in the book that you would like to comment on that was not covered in the previous questions? If so, please comment.
I have nothing else to comment about in the book.
Please rate the following questions on a scale of 1 to 10. Ten is good and one is poor.
A. How interesting was it to read? 9
B. How helpful were the contents? 10
C. How easy was it to read? 9
D. Would you recommend it to others? 10
E. What is the overall rating you would give it? 10
Goal Setting 101
Assessment by Anthony Ayoade (Nigeria)
1. What is the main idea that the author is trying to convey in the book?
The book is on how to understand the fundamentals of setting and achieving goals.
2. What were the seven ideas which were personally most important to you and why? List these seven ideas followed by an explanation after each one as to why it was important to you. Use personal examples from your own life.
i) Every goal we achieve begins with how we think about it.
Achieving a goal depends on how we think about it and understand it; a person who has no goal to think about will think hopelessly. The above idea is important to me because it brings to my consciousness the need for me to always think about my goals. And based on my knowledge of the Law of Attraction, I am aware that what I think about is what I bring about. However, this idea teaches me that I have to devote more time to think deeply about my goals to give my subconscious mind the opportunity to work on them.
Thinking about goals gives hope and bestows an improved self-image, and as it happens, our confidence and power of focus are enhanced. Before starting a trip, we must first think about our destination, the purpose of the trip, and what we expect to do when we get there. A trip is not well planned if it has no mission. Every goal we achieve begins with vision, that is, ability to see what we want to achieve in our mind.
Accomplishing a goal requires a stated mission statement to declare who I am, why I exist, and what I intend to accomplish. Thinking about my personal mission statement and how to achieve my goals is important in that it makes me seek and respect all the facts on ground and accept my power of choice to follow the right path or go off course. It is good to note that I become passionate when I think about any goal that suits my purpose in the ten crucial areas below:
Personal
Health
Recreation
Family
Friends
Community
Career
Financial
Household
Spiritual
ii) We need to know what we need before doing personal planning. Identifying what you need before setting a goal is a major step in getting it. You need planning to link you from where you are to where you want to be in every area of your life. There is no substitute for planning your way to success. Goal-getters are planners who plan before they act by creating circumstances rather than merely responding to them. They give room for spontaneity, and in some situations, they don’t have to wait for all conditions to be perfect before acting on a plan when such opportunities arise. If you don’t know what you need, you’ve lost power of focus and concentration.
The above idea reveals that the reason why certain goals of mine had failed is that I did not identify what I needed at the beginning. It is a matter of survival to face facts at the planning phase. Reality is not a matter of how one wants things to be but the way things actually are. Anything built on deception can’t stand. Preparing well, deeply and thoroughly in advance prevents wastage of time and resources.
When a mission involves people, every one of them has a part in establishing it. The above idea is very important to me because I discovered that certain challenges I face in my relationships are caused by lack of discussion, compromise, and agreement. When people buy into the importance and method of achieving a goal, it is usually successfully accomplished. This is done by creating a forum for input and warm people to the idea in a natural and acceptable manner. People will not blindly follow if they are not motivated with knowledge of the goals, objectives, and purpose. Successful buy-in involves a 3-step analysis: Discussing who, what, where, when, how and why of the desired goal. Secondly, give-and-take or compromise between all parties must be encouraged, and thirdly, all concerned need to reach agreement. Furthermore, during planning, provision must be made for contingency or unforeseen situations which may or may not happen. “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure”.
iii) Action serves as conduit through which advancement flows
Worthwhile goal without action amounts to nothing, and as it happens the first rule of personal leadership is to act as if you are a leader. One cannot swim without being in the water and one can’t be in the water and be afraid of swimming. The only way to achieve a goal is to lead oneself to victory – believe in self and act like a leader. Every plan must be acted upon with speed; simplicity, and boldness. A good plan that is dragged too long before being implemented may lose its worth. A good plan should also be made as simple as possible – this is only possible if we thoroughly understand our objectives and purpose. Then, we become bold and courageous to step out as quickly as we can. Action speaks louder than words. To act is to do the right thing. Without action there are no results, and only results matter, not what we say.
In various institutions, home, government, and religions, we have leaders playing to the gallery. These people say what needs to be said and do not act accordingly; therefore we have the Boko Haram insurgence in my country, Nigeria, today; and other similar problems scattered all over the world.
To attain a goal, we must always set a specific deadline to act. Lack of deadline means lack of commitment. There are some things we cannot control in the real world. We have no power over time, so there is no totally right time to act in the real world apart from the time we decide for ourselves. Opportunities are easily lost if we wish to wait for perfect conditions. We have to learn to balance time against available resources by implementing now with a view to perfecting it later.
Everyone has power to choose what to think or where to focus energy. A decision to achieve a goal is not made once and for all but it happens continually by not getting distracted due to its importance. Once we know what we want to achieve, the next thing is to find out how it will be done. We can apply past experiences, either good or bad to the present (and to the future) in order to go forward and keep moving. “The best defense is a good offence” – feel the fear but do what you have to do anyway. Until we start, we may not realize unanticipated factors that can affect our deadlines; we need to be flexible when such situation arises, without compromising quality, and commitment. Without demanding and expecting a great deal from myself and from the people around me, I may not discover new levels of performance. The above idea is important to me because it encourages me to raise my bar and challenge myself to clear it.
Nothing of any lasting value was ever created by someone who thinks logically like everyone else. The people who do common things in uncommon ways, those who think out of the box, are the exemplary ones who improve people’s lives and move the society forward. In my environment, people will always find excuses for not pursuing or achieving a goal. For these people to wake up they need to hear voices devoid of any doubt or fear which I have to provide based on my knowledge as an IIGL student. Winston Churchill was never in doubt in his speeches and tone of voice on the ability of Great Britain to defeat Germany. To make positive statements that will inspire confidence in my hearers, and make them act, I have to base my words on accurate information and facts. The need for me to keep updating my knowledge is also emphasized in this idea.
iv) Self-knowledge makes you determine your mission Self knowledge grows as you subject your life to examination; and to set a goal, you need to know yourself. The examined life is the one worth living, and in this act, “everything counts”
Do you listen to your own speech?
Do you reflect on your own thoughts?
Do you look at your own actions?
This is the process to master self. Philosophies are shaped by observing and striving to understand the events of each moment being faced. Self examination makes one identify the virtues to attain and the vices to forego. Every moment offers an opportunity for growth, learning and self-improvement. There are rules in the game of life; beyond knowing the rules, we must know how to apply them in order to win. Look at your life honestly to see whether you know the rules, disregarding the rules makes playing the game difficult and winning impossible.
As we plan, the SWOT analysis can be used for immediate and effective analysis of every goal we want to achieve. SWOT stands for Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats. There are two variations of the analysis: Internal SWOT Analysis which has to do with the power to control oneself and external SWOT Analysis which has to do with the environment which one has no power to control. Both of them should be examined to anticipate challenges and adjust accordingly before taking actions or setting goals. To determine my mission in life, I have to use my internal SWOT analysis to reveal my goals by making a list of my likes, dislikes, strengths, and weaknesses. The things that I like to do and are good at certainly point the way to positive activities I can do; and the things I do not like and weaknesses that I should avoid are also revealed.
v) To achieve a goal, you have to set performance standards and know your limits. There is a limit to the level every one can perform after which the output begins to diminish. We grow by stretching. By pushing the limits, we define new limits and achieve more than we think possible. Winning attitude motivates and sustains good performance despite the inevitable. However, it is wise to know the limits of what you can expect form yourself and those around you. Pushed beyond limits, people work inefficiently, poorly, by wasting time and resources.
To address inefficiency or know whether progress is being made toward a goal, I have to set performance standards. Performance standards represent the milestones and specific objectives to be reached and the specific times the progress will be measured. Five separate standards for performance can be established for any goal to measure the progress made in achieving it: Outstanding, good, average, poor, counter-productive.
The message in the above idea is to learn to inspect what one expects. I have to schedule time at least once a quarter to review my goals. Once I’ve seen where I am going, I do periodic monitoring of my actions to confirm that time and efforts invested are productive. I have to set clear and precise calendar dates to review what I expect. I know that if I expect good performance from my car, for example, I need to inspect it periodically to find out what it needs – to avoid paying a heavy price. The above idea makes me know that relentless and repeated assessments assist in identifying whether a pursuit is counter-productive before it happens.
vi) To achieve a goal, you need a winning attitude. It is a winning attitude that motivates success, and it is a winning attitude that sustains success. Challenges are inevitable on our way to success, so need to keep a positive attitude to overcome obstacles. This idea is especially needed in my country due to intimidating challenges we face in every area of life. We need people whose knowledge and judgment we can trust or people who can give others the benefit of their experience and create a winning attitude in them. I have to share my vision with those who will be impacted by it or those who know its importance; and avoid people with negative attitude who want to make me feel defeated.
To have a winning attitude, I have learnt from the above idea that I must stop thinking logically as the majorities do. Stories of winners show that their actions were illogical; but they charted a new course, where others feared to tread. They have peculiar attributes that make them courageous: discipline, self-confidence, self-worth, and self-esteem. Are they not afraid? They can’t deny it, but only refused to dance along with fear. My success depends on my ability to advance in the face of fear. I am assured by stories of underdogs who refused to quit – those who refuse to wait for things to happen but made it happen. “A free ride on the road of irresponsibility is a dead end”.
vii) Once you get going to achieve a goal you have to keep things going
As a Physics student, I was taught that a body will continue to be at rest until an external force acts on it; and once it is set in motion, it keeps moving. To boost morale and motivate oneself to keep things going, one can create occasions to celebrate one’s accomplishments. Recognizing our exceptional achievement and rewarding ourselves serve as incentive to further achievement and build confidence. One other thing that is often overlooked to sustain the energy to keep things going is humor. We often take the journey too serious such that we refuse to have fun, especially when the unexpected shows up. The road to success is often bumpy and constantly under construction, but that doesn’t mean we can’t enjoy the ride; we can create moments of deep satisfaction and fun to release tension, and enjoy the process.
3) How will these ideas or lessons help you in a practical way, both in your daily personal life and in helping you to create a better world? If so, how?
Average minds find it easier to think about their past or what is happening today than their future, but thinking about future goals brings hope rather than hopelessness and its attendant failure symptoms. When I am confronted with bad emotions, I think about my goals, and I also encourage people to set goals because there is no hopeless situation but only people who think hopelessly due to lack of goals. My country and some parts of the world are going through a lot of challenges now; however, good future belongs to those who think about it. I belong to a group called GEMSTONE; our goal is to have a new Nigeria by year 2025. Our duty is to share this goal with like-minds and make them think about a positive change, as it is a proven idea that ‘what we think about expands’. Goals bring hope in future and grants strength in the present; therefore goal setters are happier and healthier to serve others, despite challenges which sometimes make others commit suicide.
The idea that I need to know what I need before doing personal planning helps in prioritizing. The challenges we face as individuals, as institutions, and as nations are products of our inability to separate what we need from what we want, and it makes us act arbitrarily. The world will become a better place when I don’t want so many things that I do not need, which make life difficult for others. I live in an environment where the leader is always right; this wrong notion has rubbed off on me such that I don’t believe in discussion, compromise, and agreement before implementing my decision at home and in my workplace, which had led to wastage of resources in the past. Now, I know better.
I used to believe that if something is for me it will come to me but recent happenings have shown that my goals will remain on paper unless it is worked out with passion. With my new understanding, I believe in the idea that action serves as conduit through which advancement flows. The world will become a better place if all of us begin to take action, no matter how little to effect a positive change wherever we are. I can only contribute to make the world better than I met it when I do something with my life through my goals.
The idea that self-knowledge makes us determine our mission is important because without knowing self, it is difficult to know how to set goals; which is the reason why I have not achieved certain goals I had set. Consciousness of my strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats is helpful in identifying my limits and follow only the goals that make me happy and passionate. The reason why I have lost focus in the past in respect of my goals is that I did not inspect them well initially, and many resources were wasted before facing reality because performance standards were not set to guide me in taking necessary decision in earnest. I am part of many others in the world who cannot achieve certain goals; our problem is that we do not set performance standards and know our limits. Unless we are flexible as to the route, we may keep doing the same thing with little or no progress.
To achieve a goal, a winning attitude is needed. A practical way that I am making use of this idea is through my membership of a mentoring group where I gain from the experience of achievers, and use my knowledge to teach others who are within my circle of influence. I am also being encouraged by the belief that once I get going to achieve a goal; I have to keep things going by making it a hobby.
4) Quotes: Are there brief quotes from the book which really got your attention? If so, please list and comment on them.
i) “The person who cannot face a fear will always be running from it” Feed the fear before making a decision, but once the decision is made, forget the fear, and run toward the goal. The fear of failure is a major reason why people don’t set goals. To have a winning attitude is to learn to manage failure and setbacks. Failure can be an opportunity for learning courage and character. The fact that you fail today does not mean you’ll not succeed tomorrow. No one wins all the time, because every goal involves risk, and this is where your character is measured. True success is measured by how high you bounce back when you fall down. Everyone may fail, but it doesn’t mean you have to see yourself as a failure, and refuse to act.
ii) “Temporary discomfort is better than temporary relief – if it averts permanent catastrophe.” It is the end result that matters. It is better to tell people the bitter truth that provides good results in the end, than tell them what they want to hear and end up with bad consequence. A good leader does the right thing and the right thing is to avert permanent catastrophe. To succeed, a wise person knows that the difference between an achiever and a perennial follower is the extra mile the winner goes doing more than he or she is asked.
iii) “Achieving goals define success and gives pleasure.” Goals determine what you will have or not have, what you will do or not do and what you will become or not become.
iv) “Values lay the groundwork for your goals. Goals lead to the fulfillment of your mission. Your mission leads to the realization of your life’s work – your legacy.” In life as in football, the game is meaningless unless the players know where the goalposts are. There are rules in the game of life: beyond knowing them, you must follow the rules of the game. When we have values, we will think about our inalienable rights to set a goal and achieve it, and also respect our rights and responsibilities to leave a legacy.
v) “A goal is an end toward which you direct specific effort” There are three key elements of any goal to be achieved: specificity, measurability, and time-boundedness. The attainability and reality of a goal is spelt out in these elements. Before taking action, a goal is needed just as a target has to be identified before aiming a shot: 95% of achieving anything is to know what it is. Your ability to see the end from the beginning is the foundation of the achievement of a goal. Until something becomes specific it can’t be dynamic, it is therefore important to write down the goals to be achieved. The mind doesn’t reach out towards achievement until it has a clear objective. Writing goals down lends clarity. Then, start with one little step and do something everyday in the direction of the goal.
5) Is there anything in the book that you do not understand or are unclear about, or are there ideas which you disagree with and if so, why?
There is nothing in the book that I did not understand or unclear about, and I disagree with no idea.
6) Did the book contain exercises for the reader to complete? If so, did you complete all the exercises and did you find them helpful?
The book contains exercises which I attempted and they helped me to understand the essence of its message in my life.
7) Was there anything you read in the book that you would like to comment on that was not covered in the previous questions? If so, please comment.
I have nothing else to comment about in the book.
Please rate the following questions on a scale of 1 to 10. Ten is good and one is poor.
How interesting was it to read? 10
How helpful were the contents? 10
How easy was it to read? 9
Would you recommend it to others? 9
What is the overall rating you would give it? 9
Long Walk to Freedom
Assessment by Ayoade Anthony ( Nigeria)
1. What is the main idea that the author is trying to convey in the book?
The main idea that the author is trying to convey in the book is the usage of resolute adherence to personal principles and ideals to become a leader: eliciting the cooperation of others, listening, and putting others before self. The book shows how these can be used to achieve greater respect, greater recognition, greater cooperation and success in the struggle of life.
2. What were the seven ideas which were personally most important to you and why? List these seven ideas followed by an explanation after each one as to why it was important to you. Use personal examples from your own life.
i. Power of Association
Mandela was influenced by the people he associated with, from the time he saw Jongibata, his guardian, the acting regent of the Thembu people, a new world opened before him. Having attended University College of Fort Hare, the quality of life he wanted for himself had been seen in the people he met and admired. He knew it will not be attainable without having good education. His understanding of South African history and politics started as a small boy while listening to chiefs who came to the Great Place to settle disputes. The war stories they narrated and indictment of the British made him feel angry and cheated. One can say that the seed to fight for freedom was unconsciously sown at that time.
I have seen the importance of associating with the right people in order to actualise my dream. I had a cousin who used to visit my family during holiday from the university. The inspiration and motivation given by him spurred me to sit for university entrance exams three times before I finally passed. In Johannesburg Mandela moved with people like Gaur Radebe, and Walter Sisulu who valued common sense and practical experience than high academic qualifications. By the time he got to University of Witwatersrand for a law degree, Mandela associated with a few whites and Indians who had liberal values which opened a new world of ideas and political beliefs to him.
ii. Formal Education without Informal Education is Incomplete
Nelson Mandela used to have the limiting belief that proficiency in English and success in business were the direct result of high academic achievements. Despite Walter Sisulu’s prominence as both a businessman and a local leader, he discovered that Sisulu had never gone past standard VI. He learnt that one does not need a degree to be a leader, and having a degree does not make one a leader. He found out that most outstanding leaders in Johannesburg are not graduates, but their fluency and eloquence in English is better than many who had school degrees.
Nelson learned the essence of the above principle when he was an articled clerk at Witkin, Sidelsky and Eidelman law firm. A fellow employee named Gaur Radebe is an example of a man without a degree who seemed infinitely better educated than the men who had good degrees. Not only was Gaur more knowledgeable, he was self-reliant, bolder and more confident, showing that a degree was not in itself a guarantee of leadership. Education meant nothing unless one uses it to go into the community to prove oneself.
I can cite the example of Aliko Dangote, the richest man in Africa as I write now has no formal education, he is the largest employer of labour in Nigeria. He employs hundreds of people who know things based on facts, but Dangote knows the reasons behind the facts and rules degree holders in the boardrooms of his numerous companies.
iii. Persistence and Strong Convictions are the Secret of Success
The power of persistence in achieving one’s vision was shown first hard to Mandela in 1946 when the Indians in South Africa protested against the enactment of the Asiatic Land Tenure Act by the Smuts government. The tenacity and persistence that the Indians used to confront the obnoxious Act really made a lasting impression in the mind of Nelson Mandela. Many Indians walked the talk by willing to suffer and sacrifice. Many of his Indian friends, preferred to go jail than being oppressed.
He equally had childhood heroes like Makanna who taught him the value of selflessness that is needed to persist before one can succeed. He refused to be a sheep to be prodded at will by the racist regime in South Africa; instead he decided to be a lion that refused to sleep with the sheep. He refused to submit his destiny into the hands of his oppressors by merely weeping in the presence of those who will not console him.
To persist, he did not allow his spirit to be broken by the evil regime. He knows that each effort he makes may seem insignificant but success will come one day. Despite imprisonments, harassments, intimidations, and death threats, he kept on going. He stood up for his rights all the way and refused to enjoy any special privileges that were not extended to his fellow men while in prison. He kept his eyes on the goal that one day South Africa will be free, knowing that where dry desert ends, green grass grows; that in every adversity, there is a seed of equal or greater benefit.
While in the university, I remained an optimist despite all attempts to frustrate me. There were many dark moments when my faith was sorely tested, but I refused to give up. I had an accident that kept me away from lectures, my main sponsor had his job terminated, and I had lecturers who did not cooperate. I had to prove the fact that each obstacle is a mere detour to my goal and strong conviction is the secret of surviving deprivation. Character is measured by facing up to difficult situations, and “a hero is a man who would not break even under the most trying circumstances.”
iv. Power of Integrative, Win-Win Negotiation
People criticize what they don’t know. When Mandela initiated negotiations with the apartheid government of South Africa after spending many years in prison, he was condemned by certain people in the African National Congress that he had compromised his beliefs. But so many resources can be saved it we understand and know how to use the power of negotiation. Wars, real and cold are avoidable if all concerned parties come to the round table to talk. At a level, for example, in the emancipation struggle in South Africa, the apartheid regime and Mandela realized that they must negotiate to avoid much more losses. All the parties have to realistically assess their strengths and weaknesses so as to have common terms of agreement. The whites had might on their side but on the wrong side of history. The Africans had right on their side, but not yet might. Mandela was able to see beyond the obvious that a military victory was a distant if not impossible dream.
The idea of negotiating with the enemy after spending so many years in prison was quite strange to Mandela’s colleagues, but a good leader thinks out of the box, he does common things in uncommon ways. As he puts it, “There are times when a leader must move out ahead of the flock, go off in a new direction, confident that he is leading his people the right way.’’ The world needs thoughtful men and women with whom one could disagree and still shake hands. A disagreement today can lead to an agreement tomorrow. Parties involved in negotiation should be open-minded; lack of integrity on the part of any of them will necessarily subject negotiation to advances and reverses.
I found it fascinating that Win-Win negotiation is an important tool in every area of life, where different parties relate together. Institutions become strong when its members create time to rub minds on the way forward. If only we can all become more selfless, then the world and even our homes will have more peace.
My country, Nigeria is bedeviled with various challenges that can be tackled if her leaders understand the power of negotiation. Due to selfishness, successive governments in the most populous country in Africa have failed to listen to calls for them to inaugurate a Sovereign National Conference whereby elected representatives of the various ethnic groups in the country can negotiate the terms under which Nigerians can live together in peace. Today, bombings, kidnappings, and violence that were unimaginable in the past have come to stay while the government stand helplessly as lives and properties are being wasted every day. I can see that weak leaders consider negotiation as a sign of weakness, but real leaders know that by their very nature, men and women all over the world require some kind of negotiated understanding. As Mandela stated, “A leadership commits a crime against its own people if it hesitates to sharpen its political weapons where they have become less effective”.
v. To Die for a Worthy Cause it to Live
To conquer death is to conquer the world. To conquer death is to see beyond the present, to know that life is a continuum and death is just a necessary end to the temporal. I have many heroes who died in Nigeria during the military regime but I take succour in the above idea. When Moshood Abiola won the 1993 presidential election in Nigeria, the military government refused to declare him the winner. He was charged with treason, a death penalty was hanging on his neck but he was prepared for the ultimate price. As Mandela said, “One cannot be prepared for something while secretly believing it will not happen.” He subsequently died in prison under suspicious circumstances but remained a hero in the minds of the masses in Nigeria till date.
The fear of death is one of the monsters that man has to tame – what it needs is preparation and expectation not out of sheer bravery, but absolute reality. As Shakespeare stated, “Be absolute for death, for either death or life shall be the sweeter.”
Life is full of choices dictated by our individual desires. Desire to see a change in South Africa is the power behind Mandela’s decision to die for his ideals. Great men are driven with passion to pursue a noble cause and a conscience that can’t be ignored despite the odds against them, once the need is seen.
In South Africa there were white men and women who left their comfort zones to stay on the side of the less privileged. Of note is Bram Fischer, a white lawyer whose conscience forced him to reject his own heritage and ostracized by his own people; showing an unparalleled level of courage and sacrifice together with his wife, Molly. The couple were unselfish and without prejudice in a racist environment. As the son of a judge president and grandson of the prime minister of the Orange River colony in South Africa, he was a free man who fought against his own people to ensure the freedom of others. He defended the rights of the less privileged, went underground to fight the government and was imprisoned; he became sick in prison and was released shortly before he died while under house arrest. This quote by Paul Kruger summarizes it all: “In confidence we lay our cause before the whole world. Whether we win or whether we die, freedom will rise in Africa like the sun from the morning clouds.”
vi. To Believe in the Unseen is a Triumph
“To believe in the things you can see and touch is no belief at all but to believe in the unseen is a triumph and a blessing.” Abraham Lincoln
Because Mandela can see the end from the beginning, he had to leave Thembu land he loved and valued to escape from an arranged marriage can affect his goals in life. After leaving home he faced a lot of ridicule and poverty while trying to earn his degree in Law, but he believed the results of hard work will come, and the insults will turn to glory.
For Mandela, lack of appreciation and wrong accusations from the same people that he was trying to help were enough to make him give up the struggle. He was accused of nepotism and selfishness by some people despite the selflessness he had put into the liberation struggle in South Africa. His wife was constantly harassed and put on trial and banished while he was in prison. His choice in putting the people’s welfare before that of his family was put to question when his mother died of a heart attack as a result of lack of care due to his imprisonment. His first wife left him due to his commitment to the struggle, despite all these; he found it difficult to ignore the needs of the people, even at the expense of his own family. He also lost his first child while in prison at Robben Island, but one virtue that kept him going was “hope”, he never doubted the possibility of freedom for South Africa or the belief that he will win in the end. This fact was revealed when he had the opportunity of naming his first grand daughter while in prison, he named her Zaziwe – which means Hope.
The above idea reinforces my need to believe in things beyond what I can see before overcoming the limitations and challenges that I face. Things look so hopeless in Nigeria today, everyone is complaining because the suffering is palpable, but I can still see the light at the end of the tunnel.
vii. Life is a Garden and We are Gardners
In real life, good gardeners derive satisfaction in tendering their gardens. Real and aspiring leaders should see the garden as a metaphor for certain aspects of their lives. They sow seeds into people’s lives and wait to harvest the result with enduring satisfaction and sense of accomplishment. Good gardeners guide their plants against potential threats, preserving what can be preserved, and eliminating what cannot succeed. Like the gardener, leaders must take responsibility for what they do.
In prison, after spending his days at the query, Mandela used his free time to practice gardening; he would dig in the courtyard to excavate a great many rocks to allow the plants room to grow. He read many books on gardening techniques to sharpen his skills. A good leader must also sharpen his leadership skills to raise people. The early harvests in Mandela’s garden were poor, but they soon improved. In like manner, a good leader knows that his followers may not live up to expectation at the beginning but will ultimately improve if he doesn’t give up.
For a time, Mandela attempted to grow peanuts, and used different soil and fertilizers, but finally gave up. It was a failure. In real life, a few or exceptional cases arise in a leader’s life whereby a particular follower is not teachable. It is easier to educate a man when he wants to learn. Sometimes there is nothing we can do to save something that must die. Mandela had a particularly beautiful tomato plant in his garden that he coaxed from a tender seedling to a robust plant that produced deep red fruit. But by commission of mistake or omission of care, the plant began to wither and decline until it died despite all efforts to revive it.
It is the responsibility of the leader to inspect what he / she expects. The leader must know his or her followers. In Tolstoy’s great work, “War and Peace”, General Kutuzov was underestimated by the Russian court but he defeated Napoleon because he made his decisions based on a visceral understanding of his men and his people. As a gardener knows his plants, to truly lead men, one must also truly know them. The gardener knows that weeds are unavoidable and uninvited visitors in the garden, temptations to compromise ideals face leaders in different forms but he or she must identify them and take responsibility by using their ideals to do right things.
The above idea is quite revealing as it helps me in defining leadership in a new light. There are people I have done so much to lead who don’t live up to expectations, now I know that it is easier to educate a man when he wants to learn. Sometimes there is nothing I can do to save a plant that must die; hence I do not need to get frustrated.
3. How will these ideas or lessons help you in a practical way, both in your daily personal life and in helping you to create a better world? If so, how?
I believe in the Power of Association, that is why I belong to empowering associations like the International Institute for Global Leadership and the 100/10 Academy that provide powerful references for me. Without having references, it is difficult to be a reference that can influence others positively. I recommend these mentoring groups for people to join every time I have cause to give a talk on how to live consciously in the new challenging world. Recently, I organized a lecture free of charge for people on “Sensitisation towards the Importance of Informal Education.” The essence of it is to raise awareness for people to start combining informal education with formal education.
As a leader and a youth class teacher in the church, I often settle rifts among people, especially young couples. Apart from being personally beneficial, I found the principle behind win-win negotiation quite instructive in teaching relationship management to them. The world will be a better place if we all respect the responsibilities and expectations that negotiation entails, whereby one party will not try to manipulate and intimidate the other. Now that I understand the power of win- win negotiation, I am more matured in handling my relationships. I have to respect the fact that everyone involved in win-win negotiation has the right “to call wrong wrong” and among ourselves we can “agree to disagree agreeably” according to Stephen Covey- without anyone feeling offended. I can exercise my right not to be hoodwinked, and I must appreciate the right of others not to hoodwink them. If I can live by this principle, I will positively influence people around me, and my world becomes better for it.
To create a new world, I use every opportunity to teach the ideas I derive from these books that I read, I also intend to write my second book based on these principles to educate people, especially the young ones. At the moment, I share many of these ideas with people in the social media.
To believe in the unseen is a triumph. I am a founding member of a visionary group in Nigeria called GEMSTONE- our aim is to build a Generation that is Empowered, Motivated and Stirred To Operate in Natural Excellence. I believe in the future of my country, and I recruit the young ones into the fold as much as possible. Sometimes it can be frustrating when many of the youths refused to see the light at the end of the tunnel as great leaders do. When I remember the idea that, “Life is a garden, and we are gardeners,” it helps me to stay the course.
4. Quotes: Are there brief quotes from the book which really got your attention? If so, please list and comment on them.
“An educated man could not be oppressed because he could think for himself”
Education that doesn’t make one think is not complete. After his graduation and exposure to informal education through the people he met, Mandela decided to do away with regional and ethnic loyalties for a common African cause. Education has broadened his mind that man is permitted to make his own choices; he became conscious of the many rivers yet to cross. Informal education made him see the discrepancy between his old assumptions and his actual experience, that leadership has nothing to do with any physical identity – his degree or his connection to royalty. Education had given him freedom from his old beliefs.
“There is nothing like returning to a place that remains unchanged to find the ways in which you yourself have altered.”
Until you know where you are coming from, you cannot know where you are going. Once in a while one needs to create time for introspection, retrospection and rediscovery. If one does not know where one is coming from, one will not know where one is going. Looking at the past and the present makes one understand the future- this is a definition of vision. When Mandela’s guardian died, he went back home to his roots to find out how he has changed compared to the place he left behind, and to find out what he needs to do, it was a period he used to sort out the conflicts between his head and his heart.
“A nation should not be judged by how it treats its highest citizens, but its lowest ones.”
Nelson Mandela once said, “My country is rich in the minerals and gems that lie beneath its soil, but I have always known that its greatest wealth is its people, finer and truer than the purest diamonds.” This truth is hidden to African leaders who have been insensitive to the aspirations of their citizens. Greed on their part makes them treat the masses of people with disdain while they celebrate those who became rich through sweat of the poor as long as they belong to their circle. They give gifts to the highest citizens while the lowest ones who constitute the majority are made to suffer. The poor man is jailed for stealing goat while the rich man is let off the hook through “plea bargaining” after stealing mind-boggling amounts. The greatness of a nation is determined by the unbiased application of its law towards the highest citizens and the lowest ones. African rulers prefer to protect their personal interests than the interest of the poor. They prefer to step on the toes of the lowest citizens than hurting the highest ones. This wrong attitude on their part led to the Arab spring that swept many North African leaders away recently. The fact remains that truth will always prevail as it happened ultimately in South Africa where apartheid was ultimately destroyed after being practiced for so many years.
“What have you brought to the world?”
The above question means “Zenani” in Xhosa language, a name that embodies a challenge, suggesting that one must contribute something to society. Ironically, this name is possessed by every human born into the world and all of us must live up to its meaning.
“I leaned that courage was not the absence of fear but the triumph over it.”
The brave man is not he who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers that fear. Mandela confessed that he felt fear himself more times than he can remember, but he hid it behind a mask of boldness.
“Man’s goodness is a flame that can be hidden but never extinguished.”
Despite the brutish approach of some of the warders he encountered in his grimmest times in prison, Mandela still saw a glimmer of humanity in some others, still enough to reassure him and keep him going. Man was not born to show hatred, he must learn to hate, and if he learn to hate, he can be taught to love, for love comes naturally to the human heart than its opposite. Goodness is his birthright.
“To be the father of a nation is a great honor, but to be the father of a family is a greater joy.”
In the above quote, the importance of the family is being emphasized; it was painful to Mandela that he was not able to fulfill his role as a husband to his wife and a father to his children. Due to the struggle, he had little time left for his family. The children grew up without his guidance. His mother, he believed died early due to lack of care when he was in prison. Due to circumstances beyond his control, he had to part from his wife.
“Exercise is not only a key to physical health but to peace of mind.”
Exercise dissipates tension, and tension is the enemy of serenity. Mandela confirms in his book that he worked better and thought more clearly when he was in good physical condition and saw training as one of the inflexible disciplines of his life. In his hostile environment, exercise was an outlet of his frustration and anger, especially in prison where he advocated for time and facilities for proper exercise from the authorities.
“There are victories whose glory lies only in the fact that they are known to those who win them.”
For a leader, private victories that no one knows about usually come before it manifests assuredly as public victories. Sometimes, he or she takes actions that are unpopular, or whose results cannot be seen for many years to come. With hope, great leaders sow privately, staying true to their ideals in order to reap publicly. Leaders have personal principles that are followed with discipline which serve as leverage for future success. Temptations in different forms came in a bid to play into the hands of the opposition – Mandela was offered a plan to escape, to have his prison terms drastically reduced in exchange for his support of government policy, but he stood his ground in all cases.
5. Is there anything in the book that you do not understand or are unclear about, or are there ideas which you disagree with and if so, why?
There is nothing in the book that I did not understand or unclear about, and I disagree with no idea.
6. Did the book contain exercises for the reader to complete? If so, did you complete all the exercises and did you find them helpful?
The book contains no exercises for the reader to complete.
7. Was there anything you read in the book that you would like to comment on that was not covered in the previous questions? If so, please comment.
I have nothing else to comment about in the book.
Please rate the following questions on a scale of 1 to 10. Ten is good and one is poor.
A. How interesting was it to read? 10
B. How helpful were the contents? 10
C. How easy was it to read? 10
D. Would you recommend it to others? 10
E. What is the overall rating you would give it? 10
Projections of the Consciousness
Assessment by Ayoade Anthony (Nigeria)
1. What is the main idea that the author is trying to convey in the book?
The author tries to make the reader see projection as a natural physiological activity, attainable by everyone with a sound mind demanding only the discipline of one’s mental life and personal conduct. The essence is to improve one’s physiological performance, to infinitely expand human’s boundaries of reality, to open a whole new world, larger than the physical one to be explored. Making individuals to understand how to expand their self – awareness and manifest their consciousness, and understand evolution – leading to more understanding of self. Consciousness expresses itself through its thosenes (thoughts, emotions, and energies) using the intellectual body, the extra-physical body, and the energetic body respectively. The book gives the important revelation that apart from the physical body, humans have three other bodies.
2. What were the seven ideas which were personally most important to you and why? List these seven ideas followed by an explanation after each one as to why it was important to you. Use personal examples from your own life.
i. Thought is Living Power
Thoughts are extraordinarily forceful creative resources. It takes willpower to control our thoughts which determine our evolutionary level. Thoughts can travel faster than the speed of light, and they give rise to decisions, actions, and lucidity of the consciousness. Humans determine their evolutionary stature through the thoughts they entertain. Since energy can be influenced by thought, it can be used to produce instantaneous wonders. For one who is capable of controlling thoughts, imagination can be turned into reality. A thousand positive thoughts can become a great mental energy in the field of human creativity. One can use strong mental power to sculpt morpho-thosenes (thought – forms) to create objects. On this, I can see this idea as the reason why a strong faith makes prayer to work wonders.
The projector “hears” the thought of the extra-physical consciousness in the extra-physical dimension like he hears the voice of a person while in the waking state. For this, it is instructive for humans to realize the power of thoughts and develop ability to control thoughts. The necessity of maintaining positive thoughts while performing any task of great responsibility on earth is emphasized in this book.
Discipline, practice and perseverance sharpen perception and enables mastery of one’s thoughts, emotions and energies. Our mental capacities and intrapersonal habits determine the quality of our thoughts, and it is more important than our environment or physical limitations.
The extra-physical dimension is a thought-based world, thoughts and acts occur simultaneously; that is, communication is carried out through thought transmission and there is no language barrier. Out of the vehicles used in transporting the consciousness, the intellectual body is more flexible and efficient than others.
I found this knowledge useful in understanding that personal growth requires ability to control thoughts. The reason why people cannot live wisely in their daily living on earth is lack of effort on their part to have self- mastery of their heads and their hearts. But life is fundamentally a struggle against self, not others. To fully evolve and have a lucid mind, one needs the power to direct thoughts, to exercise willpower, perseverance and vigorous mental capacities are needed to overcome obstacles. Knowledge shared by the author on projection helps me to see the similarity between it and meditation. It makes me to have a greater knowledge, understanding and more interest in the principle of meditation.
ii. The Invisible Directs the Visitble
Things that happen on earth are actually products of what is happening in the invisible dimension. In Waldo Vieira’s projections, he discovered that there are educational institutions that prepare extra-physical consciousnesses for their next intra-physical life on earth. Candidates for physical rebirth transform their appearance, attitudes, interests, occupation and lifestyle, and create a likeness of the conditions they would soon face on earth.
There are educational institutions and workshops in the extra-physical dimension where extra-physical consciousnesses prepare for their coming intra-physical life on earth. There they practice the mental sculpting of morphothosenes and they work with the tools and other objects they create. The experience gained at workplace in previous intra-physical life can be simulated in extra-physical life. As opportunity permits, the extra-physical consciousness lays a foundation of the professions he loves in order to enrich the memory bank of the next biological body. This is especially relevant for those who work in specialized field like astronomy or research.
To further buttress the idea that the invisible rules the visible, an ill extra-physical consciousness has the ability to exercise impulsive influence over humans, and even animals and plants to influence them negatively. However, multidimensional assistance exists everywhere regardless of the adverse condition of the environment on earth. Everything is under the control of constantly wakeful positive multidimensional work forces, invisible monitoring is being performed by them behind the scene in different human organizations on the planet.
A particular evolved extra-physical consciousness can inspire the undertaking of a project and lend his name to it. He works alongside the others to clean and make extra-physical preparation of the environment, taking into consideration the future human workers. Even when the project becomes fully operational, the multidimensional team provokes intuitive inspiration in the human workers to make the work- place safe. They have the power to transmit ideas to human workers. Big plants and factories have dedicated extra-physical consciousnesses responsible for preventing physical accidents as well as external interference by shadowy consciousnesses upon the unwary workers. In this way they would prevent disasters that could bring unpredictable consequences as it happened in nuclear plants in the Chernobyl accident in the old USSR and recently in Japan. Such accidents would have been a common occurrence in every large establishment on the planet without the assistance of extra-physical personnel department assigning tasks for smoothing out rough edges and moving things in fraternal direction.
No great organization appears overnight, it is a product of inspiration from the higher spheres. In the roots of every great tree of human progress lies the unseen hand of multidimensional work forces.
I can see the above idea that the invisible directs the visible in the light of my belief in angels and prayer, whereby the angels of God represent the good extra-physical consciousnesses that have the capacity to protect humans from evil forces and impart constructive suggestions to people. By praying often, I can generate good thoughts that attract good extra-physical consciousnesses who are ready to assist in infinitely diverse ways. The above idea strongly reinforces my belief in the power of praying without weariness. My beliefs and understanding of the supernatural are further strengthened by the revelation of what operates in the invisible dimension.
There are negative invisible forces affecting the mental balance of people, thereby undermining good works on Earth. This emphasizes the mental war and the need for those working in sensitive positions on Earth to master their thoughts. Minds can easily be clouded by insanity to do unimaginable and unbelievable things. The climate of intense mental sadism occasioned by violence and terrorism is a result of associations made with shady invisible beings having extraordinary magnetic powers. This illustrates the evolutionary level of the trials that the Earth has been going through in the last millenniums. Building stations meant for nuclear and chemical wars, genocide and other destructive tendencies are part of intrusive manipulation of invisible forces in man’s mind. This insanity and disturbances occur at great human and financial expense, with government approval.
At this moment as I write, mass killings are going on in Syria, diplomatic war is brewing between Iran and the G7 (group of developed nations) due to her nuclear build-up program. It is revealing that an invisible negative force is behind the senseless actions of recalcitrant leaders and nations in the world. It’s more than meets the eye that an unwanted leader will prefer to stay in power by force rather than save the innocent lives of his people.
Recently in Northern Nigeria about seven people were killed by Muslim fundamentalists for immunizing children, such senseless killings could not have been carried out by sane minds. Vieira in his book revealed that such minds had been taken over by sick invisible beings.
iii. We Evolve Together Rising Up Hand in Hand, and Fly into Infinity in Flocks.
The words of Waldo Vieira on the above idea are revealing:
“On earth, a planet with many countries, creatures, customs, religions and interests, all inhabitants are naturally brothers. Happy are those who have learnt the universalistic principle: create eternal fraternity, overcome taboos and perform universalistic assistance while still in human life. In this way, they first receive the benefit of terrestrial liberation on the way to higher levels.”
Evolution is not only an individual process; it is also inevitably a group process. Our destinies are inevitably tied together with people we associate with. No one is born into a family or group by chance. Whatever challenges we face in our relationships, we are not encouraged to give up. We have been specifically petitioned to exercise true fraternity and cooperation with all people we relate with, even though they may not meet our standards. We have to work to motivate these companions and foster their greater understanding other than cast them out. They are almost always the reason why we are called upon to be reborn into specific conditions.
For the sake of spiritual truth and fraternal love, it is imperative to join and not divide.
No one is allowed to ascend to the more advanced dimensions by taking shortcuts. I appreciate the lesson that: to evolve I must not always think people are difficult to please or use and dump them. I am really moved by the knowledge that human ties, regardless of their physical, familial, sentimental or intellectual nature are, retained even after biological death.
iv. Knowing Enhances Self-Evolution.
Man can aspire to know hidden things. To understand the power of knowing is the peak of self development: The desire to find one’s own true freedom and happiness – letting go of limitations and learning how to live purposefully. The experiences of the author reveals that one can overcome physical limitations and start seeing beyond the physical dimension, to have hands- on experience of the invisible dimension.
There are certain fundamentals of self-evolution we need to know that can assist us in our evolutionary growth. It is imperative, for example, to know how to peacefully live without placing too much value on sex. The most important organ is not between the legs but between the ears. Maintaining a single satisfactory partner and fidelity is a natural solution. Sex is basically a thing of the mind, it is necessary for one to control one’s sexual desire as it constitutes energy that can be robbed by ailing extraphysical consciousnesses that think of nothing else and live for that objective alone. It is therefore always necessary to control one’s desire and live wisely in order to avoid such unhealthy spiritual relationships. The taming of the mind constitutes the mastery of it and everything else. For self- evolution, one needs to develop a lucid mind. This is noteworthy for those who want to live consciously.
The power of knowing also reveals that I can overcome all of life’s challenges by experiencing the invisible dimension where I can have references that give inexpressible sense of well- being. The possibility of attaining the state of continuous consciousness or wakefulness, moving back and forth between the physical and non-physical dimensions is fascinating. I consider it a mystery that consciousness does not sleep, and it is the reason why every human dream. The idea that power of knowing enhances self-evolution is very educative. It reveals that the more I know the more I grow, and I have not known everything I needed to know.
v. Everything that Happens to the Individual is Forever Recorded in the Integral Memory of the Consciousness.
According to Waldo Vieira, the integral memory records everything experienced by the consciousness from its inception forward, detail by detail, every fraction of a second. The archives of the consciousness; while not restricted by the physical body surpass the records of the cerebral cells. When necessary, recollections buried deeply in the integral memory come to the surface in their integral form, piercing though the veils of forgetfulness.
In order words, whether the events were experienced while alive on earth, while separated from the body during natural sleep, or while in the extra-physical condition (before and after intra-physical rebirth) everything is recorded. The invisible has no limitations. Blind people see, and other physically disabled people can do things like other normal people while separated from the body. It shows that humans have a memory that is more powerful than the one in the cranium.
The consciousness operates beyond physical limitations; therefore our experiences are beyond this planet that is limited by biological death and time, which is a physical tool of measurement. With physical death, only time and the body die. The body respects the actions of biological laws and is guided by the intellectual body, the seat of the consciousness. This consciousness is a separate creation that resides in the intellectual body; it is not permanently fixed in the physical body, the energetic body, or the extra-physical body.
Unlike the extra-physical body, the intellectual body has no defined shape and keeps existing before and after biological death. This makes it possible for everyone to be rewarded after death according to the works done in the body. Our experiences on earth and beyond it are all recorded timelessly in our consciousnesses that never die. It is erroneous for anyone to think that he can act wrongly because everything ends here on earth. I believe that no one is exempt from being the victim of their own negative works.
Good or bad intentions and actions of people at the human level can be compared to their counterparts at the infinite level. Bad intentioned people on earth become sick extra-physical consciousnesses when they pass over to the infinite dimension. Therefore, I have to be careful how I live my life on earth. For people like me who keep searching for the meaning of life, this idea and others in this book are enough to motivate us to do good works, because everything, good or bad, is forever recorded in the integral memory of the consciousness.
vi. Every Living Thing has Inherent Energy that can be Used Positively or Negatively.
Naturally, every living thing created has inherent energy that can be used positively. The sea, for example, has natural healing energies that it can offer sick intra-physical and extra-physical consciousnesses. Trees are also a source of psychic energy to humans. Their leaves, barks, and roots can be used to provide healing for various ailments.
Every creation of God has innate power; for example, animals can see what humans may not see. Man can use willpower to transmit healing energy to another being. Affinity between two people facilitates the transmission of energy. Energies in form of intense mental suggestions can be transmitted by one person to others at a distance by utilizing thoughts to influence them. The good thing about is that leaders in human organizations / institutions can be influenced to make good decisions by transmitting positive energies to them. The bad thing about it is that people can exploit mentally unprotected leaders to make bad decisions that affect the lives of many. In both dimensions there is war of thoughts; it is however important that we use our energies for good purposes and good intentions.
Energy of thoughts can be used to lead and give everlasting happiness, and the mental currents can equally be used to modify the mental attitude of the unwary.
We have less peace in the world because bad intentioned consciousnesses can provoke considerable mental damage consciously or otherwise to those who have not developed mental discipline. But man has the capacity to emit life- giving energies to overcome harmful forces. My faith reveals this effort or process as prayer being offered to the source of Light that I know as God. I believe that prayer is a Source of energy that can be sent to heal; so, the above idea strengthens my faith in the power of prayer. I also believe that energy surges out of the body as one sings inspirational songs passionately. I am able to see from the above that people are not their behavior but they act under the influence of harmful forces, so I need to send positive energies to them always in form of prayer.
vii. Time, Space and Physical Restrictions Cease to Exist at the Infinite Dimension.
Waldo Vieira in his book narrated an encounter with a Higher Consciousness at a place that does not exist in time, but will exist in eternity. In the nonexistent place, nothing existed, but ‘everything was existing’. His presence in the place gave him indescribable serenity and well being. He has inadequate words to describe something that does not have a point of reference, or to establish boundaries for the infinite. Man is limited by the human brain with his perceptions, traditions and conditioning to describe someone “whom no one had seen but all people had noticed”: The one who wants to make the world a happy place.
A few moments at the cosmic level is worth centuries on earth because time, space and physical restrictions cease to exist at the infinite dimension. Vieira’s encounter with the One who has no point of reference gives him the hope of a certain future to permanently enjoy that peace. The experience absolutely changed his perception, he now thinks, speaks, and acts to support the welfare of everything and everyone with optimism. He said, “I lost any bitterness towards the past – present – future, people – animals – facts – things, and circumstances.” Compared to a future beyond time and form, all evolution of human consciousness in science, and arts fade to insignificance at this infinite level.
The author’s vision reveals that in the future, all intelligent beings will live without form or the influence of time, in a mental world. At this point we will be free from our slavery to the body that we spend the major part of human life taking care of. We will no longer need food, sleep or sex because we will remain euphoric in a continuous waking state and in a permanent orgasmic state. There, with our thoughts alone, we will be confronting the consequences of our acts openly without simulation, or hypocrisy.
I have to continue living consciously, avoiding all absurdities, vanities, man-made restrictions, and stubbornness in this temporary human life. I now appreciate more the lives of those who decided to become liberal, serving the weak and the less privileged. These special humans are open- minded towards positive change and coherent and mature in their actions. The world needs more of such men and women who live above self, who understand the power of reflection and see peace and happiness helping the poor as they face personal pain, trials and ordeals. In Nigeria and all over the world, I salute men like Moshood Abiola, and Martin Luther King, who lived above all physical restrictions to die seeking the betterment of the lives of others. I believe time is up for those who promote religious and sectarian violence to destroy lives; they should start preparing for cosmic life and embrace knowledge-based faith in the existence of continuous consciousness.
3. How will these ideas or lessons help you in a practical way, both in your daily personal life and in helping you to create a better world? If so, how?
Knowing enhances self-evolution. I discovered that my inability to live consciously in the past had been caused by ignorance. The more I have a better understanding and new interpretation of spiritual issues which hitherto had not been so clear to me, the more I know the right things to do. The ideas in this book are making me to see more than the obvious; they have transformed my thoughts, beliefs, and emotions to give me a new perspective and shape of my world. Now, I see every creation in a new light. I was not created by accident but for a purpose, so it is my duty to spread the good news of love to the world in my words and actions. I used to cast people out of my life when they do not meet my standard, now, I have to work to motivate these companions and foster their greater understanding. I have made up my mind to exercise true fraternity and cooperation with all people I relate with.
The visible rules the invisible, according to one of the ideas I gained in this book. People are being misled by negative forces. Energy of peace can be emitted with strong will to counter any negative attack. I have to consciously pray every single day for leaders and people in every area of life all over the world to make wise decisions. There is chaos everywhere in the world because people do not have inner peace. Praying, and confessing positive words make one transmit positive energies. It is important to have the awareness that we can use the emission of energies defensively to address the forces of darkness in the world.
To the ordinary minds, the existence of extra-physical consciousnesses may seem unreal but conscious minds know that out- of- body experience enhances a profound expansion of the consciousness. If troubled minds have such a reference, the world would become a better place to live. Better thoughts are produced and directed, emotions are controlled, and better choices will be made and destinies will be ordained. Any process that gives 50% of extra-physical lucidity makes a lasting impression in the mind, inevitably generating changes in the person’s lifestyle, personal habits, social and religious activities, and even sleeping and eating habits. It is important for me to make use of these ideas in my life and use them to positively influence others in my words and actions. It is equally important for me to make others have this awareness.
My logical reasoning in the past had supported the fact that it is not reasonable to attribute negativities to the paranormal and evil forces; however, it had been revealed that the invisible directs the visible. It makes me realize that the war against poverty, diseases, ignorance, backwardness, violence, bad leadership in the world is basically mental, and freedom can only come when everyone understands the power of thoughts, beliefs, and emotions. Once the source of a problem is identified, it is half-solved. It is my lot to give enlightenment to those who are still ignorant to empower their thoughts and beliefs to create a new external life for them.
4. Quotes: Are there brief quotes from the book which really got your attention? If so, please list and comment on them.
“Words can’t fully express our feelings.”
The words we speak on earth do not fully represent the reality of a situation or faithfully express our feelings. Words happen to be a finite tool of communication. They can’t capture or describe invisible experiences that consist of thoughts and imaginations.
Humans can say things different from what they think in their hearts, but in the invisible realm, opposing thoughts are obvious and impossible to disguise. It is noteworthy that in the infinite dimension, nothing can be hidden; there, thoughts and actions are the same.
“The power of pure love is fantastic.”
There are highly evolved consciousnesses that suffer deep inside through their compassion for human pain. These all-knowing messengers visit different places of distress like hospitals or prison yards to spread inspirations and energies of healing, peace, and fraternity. While doing this work, they exhibit the superiority of energies of peace and light. Their presence simply keeps other consciousnesses silent, sweeping away misfortunes and cleansing their hosts and their environment.
These all-understanding messengers of love know everything about everyone, and improved individual and their environment at will. To become balanced and highly evolved, one needs to embrace serenity.
Consciousness reveals that everything in every dimension comes from the same Source, if any human get connected to this Source and manifest the attributes of kindness, love, beauty, and abundance of the creative force without being asked and without asking questions, he or she will manifest miracle.
“Every act of social assistance, no matter how small signifies fraternity, is productive and deserves praise.”
Any kind of human assistance is better than none. Nevertheless, the ideal social assistance has certain characteristics. It must be voluntary, not expecting gratitude and praises.
Extra-physical assistance do assist to diminish human anguish and failure symptoms, working in synergy with physical crisis control groups like Salvation Army, Red Cross e. t. c. throughout the earth by suggesting ideas on what to do. They work to improve the conditions of life of humans who are genuinely committed to deep community spirit.
“Extra-physical music is used in restoring the memory.”
Biological death does not lead to complete transformation until one has an inner transformation, which brings about changes in opinion, introduces new ideas and, depending on personal effort, allows one to have self mastery of all the bodies- energetic body, extra-physical body, and intellectual body. It had been revealed that someone who had just experienced biological death is still traumatized by human experiences. The imagination and memory of such extra-physical consciousness are restored by extra-physical music; to dissolve conflicts, apprehensions, doubts, regrets, limiting beliefs or fixed ideas / opinions in the memory. It is noteworthy that music can also serve as a therapy for humans to make us more powerful when used effectively with other life-transforming tools.
“The essence of everything in life is thought, emotion and energy.”
What we think with passion, we materialize and impregnate with life by emitting energy. The dead can be made alive by the thoughts, emotion and intense energy imparted to them.
“There are only happy children not noisy ones.”
Children are full of positive emotions of peace; joy, and love. It had been confirmed that children between the ages of 2 and 13 are happier than adults. They have quicker mental recuperation than adults which can be attributed to the simplicity of their minds unlike adults who overanalyze issues. With their innocent minds, they easily get fascinated. Conscious people know that children ought to be treated specially and not to be misled. They easily manifest love, a powerful tool that adults strive to have. One way or the other adults try to kill this natural love existing in these little children.
A divine injunction stated that it is better for a person to die than to mislead a small child, because he or she is trying to destroy a good thing that was created. Children are usually accused by adults of being noisy but we should be aware that, “There are only happy children not noisy ones.”
viii) “To contemplate death while still alive is a doorway to self – knowledge.”
Imagine an out-of-body experience of seeing one’s dead body with its emptied brain. Such an observation enhances learning. Mind is imprisoned by the body but our task is to make the mind to triumph over flesh and blood and thereby live consciously. It requires physical self- control, advanced relaxation, introspection with mental discipline, and ironclad- will to live outside the body temporarily.
It is fascinating that the “tools of trade” required in exercising projection is similar to that of meditation. Any exercise that gives one out – of – body experience is a doorway to self knowledge. Earthly concerns create undisciplined thinking habits but one can overcome these with discipline of thoughts and emotions.
5. Is there anything in the book that you do not understand or are unclear about, or are there ideas which you disagree with and if so, why?
There is nothing in the book that I did not understand or unclear about, and I disagree with no ideas.
6. Did the book contain exercises for the reader to complete? If so, did you complete all the exercises and did you find them helpful?
The book contains no exercises for the reader to complete.
7. Was there anything you read in the book that you would like to comment on that was not covered in the previous questions? If so, please comment.
I have nothing else to comment about in the book.
Please rate the following questions on a scale of 1 to 10. Ten is good and one is poor.
A. How interesting was it to read? 10
B. How helpful were the contents? 10
C. How easy was it to read? 9
D. Would you recommend it to others? 10
E. What is the overall rating you would give it? 10
Practical Intuition
Assessment by Ayoade Anthony (Nigeria)
1. What is the main idea that the author is trying to convey in the book?
The main idea behind the book is to teach us how to rediscover and develop our natural intuitive abilities, to enhance our mental and emotional balance in order to enhance our professional life, to create more of what we want in our lives and to help those we know create more in theirs. Each of us needs to develop conscious control over the ability to get any hidden information in the past, in the present and in the future so as to make good decisions. To rediscover the lost power, we have to learn how to actively observe and record our impressions, interpreting them, and finally integrating them with our other mental processes.
2. What were the seven ideas which were personally most important to you and why? List these seven ideas followed by an explanation after each one as to why it was important to you. Use personal examples from your own life.
i. Power of Opening
The first step towards intuitive development is to open dialogue with the universe. The above idea tells me that intuition is not limited by space and time, so I can know the answer to any question as long as I know the right questions to ask.
I am able to identify the reason for the global financial meltdown, global warming and other challenges in the world. We have not individually and collectively known how to open up the passage way to the resources of our mind and listen to the universe to create new future. Usually all that is missing in our lives is a question – the right question that will open our mind to see the interconnectedness of things. To see the part of us that transcends intellect, race, nationality, religion, political system, and ideology. Recently, I heard the news that the burning of forests by farmers in Malaysia is affecting the weather and health of people in Singapore. The universe talks to us, but we must learn how to open our minds and listen to the right things we are being asked to do, otherwise our technological and natural resources may end up not being a blessing. We have to open our minds and search our conscience for answers to how we can harmonise our materialism and spirituality.
We need to open our minds to become intuitive. We were born intuitive but we lost the natural ability due to environmental influences. As our heart opens, so does our intuition. A closed hand cannot receive anything, so also a closed mind cannot receive information that is useful for the well–being of the person and the people around him or her. An open mind is not hard but listens to every message being relayed to it. The beginning of the intuitive journey is learning to be in a relaxed and receptive frame of mind. When my mind is opened, there is no more resistance but surrendering and giving, I begin to recognize the different signs begging me for attention to make me become conscious. A leader anywhere in the world cannot see, or hear, or feel the pain of his followers when his inner senses are not open. One of the reasons we are having challenges in our relationships in homes, in work-places, in the nation and among nations is the absence of intuitive reasoning among leaders and followers.
It is the little questions that make up life.To open my inner senses up I have started giving intuitive answers to questions being asked by my mind that no one could think to ask other than me. Answering the important questions in my life makes me become intuitive, reveals greater truth about me and makes me grow in all areas. The answer to every question is inside me, I don’t need to search elsewhere. Answering the important questions in my life makes me become intuitive and makes me grow in all areas. The answer to every question is inside me, I don’t need to search elsewhere.
How can I improve my finances?
How can I make my relationships more successful?
My intuitive process of learning began when I started to think about these and other questions in all areas of my life deeply over and over again to open up my mind. My purpose in life is revealed by the time I asked the ultimate question: What is most important to me in life?
Intuitive information can arrive in three primary ways: seeing, hearing, and feeling. I have learnt to open my mind to see symbols in intuitive state with practice, waiting patiently as I allow my intuitive mind to dominate my rational mind for a period before I ‘wake up’ to use my rational mind to make sense of the impressions I receive.
ii.Power of Noticing
For me, my inner eye is the main organ being used to notice the information sent to my inner senses. What I notice is symbolic; hence it is has to be recognized. The symbol is a messenger talking intuitively to me through the body based on what I see in my mind; by giving it the needed notice, the information it is trying to pass across comes to me.
The Power of Noticing makes me understand the importance of my body as an interface with the world. To become intuitive I need to get familiar with it, not just from my neck up but from my neck down. Usually the noise or distractions around me is so much that I previously could not notice the symbols talking to me. To enhance my ability to notice, l spend a few minutes each day to listen to the voice which may appear as body signals, gut–feeling, a hunch, an image, a sound, a memory, an instant knowing or goose bumps.
Sometimes something sparks my memory of a place I have already been, a person I have already seen, or an act I have already done. Now I can understand it is a signal to pay special attention to what is taking place; perhaps to receive a specific lesson in a certain area or complete what is not yet finished. It is good to note that I can execute my projects with less mistakes and excuses by taking great notice of every signal and signs, and noticing what I notice. Everything I notice has reason and meaning, there are no coincidences. Everything is a sign which can be interpreted. Every moment – past, present, and future – has a meaning. Every sign, every act, every deed, and everything I notice can be traced to the past and is being noticed in the present through the filter I am using in the moment. And everything I notice has an application and a meaning in the future.
Our subconscious mind tells us what to notice, it knows what is important to us. Our decisions are an amalgam of diverse, and often conflicting, facts, feelings, thoughts, and memories arising from what we have unconsciously noticed. Personally I have a lot to learn from the example of George Soros who used the Power of Noticing effectively. In his book Soros on Soros, the multi-millionaire mentioned how he had noticed certain signals. He said, “When I was running the Fund, I suffered from backache. I used the onset of acute pain as a signal that there was something wrong in my portfolio.” When others were using logic to analyze the market, he used the position of his backache to take positions and cut his losses in the market. I found it noteworthy that the power of noticing is helpful in improving my health, my relationships, my finances, and my personality.
iii. Power of Pretending
It is interesting that l have to cultivate a long-forgotten attitude of pretending and fantasizing I used to have in my childhood. Remembering how to pretend is part of the intuitive learning process. I need to “make things up” in order to tell the truth by pretending to see it, to hear it, to smell it, or to feel it. The idea teaches me that I need not take things too seriously; I can still laugh and fantasize. Growing up has made me to lose my power of pretending as I become more “realistic” and logical, when, with intellectual maturity, intuition is potentially most useful to me. But life is a miracle, if I don’t believe it pleasant surprises can hardly come my way. Many times, I have confessed, ‘I am being realistic’, not knowing that such words work against the ‘power of trusting’ and ‘power of pretending’ that are needed to become really intuitive.
I need to unlearn the habit of operating with the safety sense of logic and the attitude of dismissing impressions because “it doesn’t make sense.” After noticing something, I can pretend at first that the symbols are significant and allow the meaning to come because every symbol and intuitive information has meaning even if it doesn’t make sense to my logical mind at the moment.
When I was a child, I can remember it was easy for me to make things up. I acted like actors with passion, boldness and happiness. I derived pleasure in playing the make–believe game because I knew very little about the world around me, and it was easy for me to use pretend-play as a way to experiment with knowing. As a grown up today, I assume that I know so much such that it is difficult for me to act or play like a child. I have lost the fun, natural passion and boldness or ability to make things up because of the social pressures to be logical and sensible. I had submitted my life like a robot to be controlled from outside. I can now see the reason why I can no longer easily smile, or see the funny side of life. Technology and pressure of life are affecting my natural abilities and senses- there are too much “noises” to contend with. Fortunately the secret has now been revealed that I have the power to pretend that I can see, hear, taste, touch and smell things that my logical mind does not want me to perceive. I reasoned that animals are intuitive because they are not bothered with experience of the world making sense to them to deprive them of valuable intuitive data. It makes me remember Paul the Octopus that successfully predicted all the 2010 World Cup matches.
iv. Power of Trusting
It is revealing that power of pretending leads to power of trusting. I can train myself to develop a mindset that doesn’t need to see evidence before believing, and a fixed mental attitude to overcome challenges. I can develop the ability to comprehend issues and believe in a certain way. To trust is to have insight into hidden things, going beyond what can be explained ordinarily, and identifying the limitations of logic and rationality as the sole means of guidance. In my daily decisions I have the ability to consciously use my internal senses and power of trusting to obtain hidden information on any subject, and to dissolve doubts. Due to intellectual reasoning, not many investors can trust the symbols being sent to them as George Soros did to become very rich. The lesson here is that every miracle in all areas of my life is a product of the power of trusting. According to Laura Day, “Intuition is knowing without knowing why you know.” The trick to tapping into the power of intuition is to first understand that it exists. Once we are convinced that we have it in us, we simply have the faith that it works, and sure enough, it will.” Intuition makes us to “know” events, people and perspective beyond our field of direct experience and this gives us the wisdom to handle our finances and relationships with wisdom.
“I smell rat.” “It leaves a bad taste in the mouth.” “I can see the game plan.” “I can feel the pain.” All these refer to our sixth sense of smell, taste, sight, and touch respectively. All of us have made these age-long statements before; it shows that man has been intuitive unconsciously.
Like many others, I previously had difficulty in trusting my intuition because I had preconceived ideas about how the world works and I had been quick to dismiss my intuitive insights with statements like; “That can’t be true. “It is mere coincidence.” Such statements have to be eliminated from our thinking in order to develop our power of trusting.
v. Power of Reporting
My sources of intuitive information are external sensations (seeing, hearing, smelling, touching, tasting) and internal sensations (thoughts, feelings, moods, memories). I learned that reporting everything I notice from these sources without one interfering with the other enhances creativity and intelligence. Reporting and drawing from my inner senses gives me quickness of perception. I have an improved mental power. I cannot be blank on any subject, I only need take a deep breath, focus on any one of my internal sensations and allow it to lead me to another sensation and so on. I also need to allow every ‘noise’ or distraction to recede and report everything I feel without judging its worth, or relevance. Power of reporting entails gathering and noting intuitive information. Learning to report sensations, thoughts, and feelings as they are experienced makes one become articulate and brilliant. If I hear a car beeping or my nose itches or the impression I am receiving does not make sense, I have to report it. I don’t need to mentally struggle to receive information from the universe but simply allow whatever I am receiving in response to a question to be reported.
vi. Power of Interpreting
Recently, while reading this book, I was in a group praying for a lady who had difficulty in getting a husband. As the prayer was going on I saw a plant in a glass of water in my inner senses. The plant is thriving in the water; it has good green leaves, looking healthy with transparent white roots. To have the interpretation of the images and symbols that I have seen, I had to ask question from what I noticed about the possibility of the plant to bear fruit. Then I saw a lot of plant of its type on a parcel of fertile land that can make them bear fruits. The interpretation came to me that the lady should try to attend a particular program for singles being organized in a nearby town.
Anyone can receive impression; but it takes experience and practice to interpret the information sent by intuition to the conscious mind in a useful way. Intuition is a two-step process. The first step is receiving the data in response to a question by opening up. The skill is in knowing how to ask questions, and how to interpret the intuitive responses which usually presents itself as symbols in a non-linear way. Power of interpretation is needed to interpret the information obtained by the senses while disallowing our knowledge, emotions, and biases to constitute hindrances.
We unconsciously receive information that we can use to make daily decisions as what to eat, where to go, what to do, what to read or who to marry, but many people cannot interpret them to become wise. To interpret our intuitive impression, we allow the images to speak to us, and translate them into useful information, allowing our imagery and metaphor to tell the story.
vii. Power of Integrating
I can deduce that people lose interest in intuition because their conscious minds can’t correctly interpret the melange of symbol, sound, and feeling delivered to them. Intuition is always right but its language is not always as clear as a yes or no. When my logic reasoning is stronger towards a particular outcome than my intuitive reasoning, I can investigate further with the power of integrating. Sometimes, our knowledge of a particular subject can limit our intuition in only a particular direction, blocking out other useful information. This is the essence of integrating our logic and intuitive observations.
Intuition should add to good judgment, not replace it. I have come to learn that I should not rely on intuition alone to make decisions but simply to add information to what I already know and feel. It’s good to learn how intuitive information can be clearly separated from intellectual and emotional information. Instead of getting lost, intuitive data can be matched against what our senses tell us and what our thinking tells us and what our feelings tell us, giving us a powerful system of checks and balances. The point is to keep our intuition separate from our knowledge and feelings initially, so that it can later be integrated to greater effect.
A friend of mine shared a personal experience with me about his wife who was very sick. The sickness defied medical solution, but one day while sitting down, he was shown in a brief vision the ingredients he should prepare and apply on her body. The point is that empirical or intellectual information and intuitive information sometimes have to be integrated to improve our chance to survive as our daily survival gets more precarious.
3. How will these ideas or lessons help you in a practical way, both in your daily personal life and in helping you to create a better world? If so, how?
I need to know the truth before I can taste freedom and set others free. The truth is that I don’t need to go to people at great risk and cost to ask what I already know and could see if I would look within me to where the answers lay. The truth I am spreading now is that human beings are natural members of one community irrespective of our background, race, and social-political leanings. Behind the wars at international and national levels, and acrimonies at individual levels in the world today is ignorance of the sixth sense in us, and how to use it. Carnal senses are behind deceits, lies, corruption, hatred, killings and other vices eating into the fabric of our community. I am accessing my intuition to steer me through the fears, doubts and sufferings of ordinary life to the clarity, confidence and inner power of my authentic truth. The magic of listening to my guidance and what is available when I listen is an inspiring and practical knowledge that I love to share with others, using the organizations I belong as opportunity to serve. When I join other like-minds to start giving help and asking for help from one another, we begin to bless the only community that we belong with sharing, and in the end get some power back to our lives in every area.
There is nothing like predestination; my destiny is in my hands. Much lies outside my field of influence in a world that is full of surprises, but much also lies within my field of influence. I may not know the day of danger in the world but I don’t have to be part of it. The seven ideas I gained in the book make me toget inwardly directed to look, learn, and listen to the voice of reason to foresee crises well in advance of its arrival. When I make fewer mistakes, I have more inner peace and calmness to relate well with people and address various challenges I meet in the world. My joy and peace are no longer based on what people do or external obstacles but my limited capacity to use my sixth sense to direct my thoughts and control my emotions. As leaders and followers, many of us have lost our wisdom which is the reason why we make decisions for selfish reasons only, choices that affect the planet wrongly. I join conscious people around the world in getting people aware and putting pressure on leaders to make wise decisions to make our planet better than how we met it.
Power of Pretending gives me awareness that beyond my logical reasoning, my imagination can create anything by pretending. What I can imagine in any area of my life is my reality. I can experience any creation in my inner world, it is the reason why the law of attraction or law of manifestation works as long as the feeling is aligned with the spirit of God, and doesn’t interfere with anybody’s right. Power of Pretending and Power of Trusting enhances the principle of self-reliance- one of the important requirements for success in my health, my relationships, my finances, and my personality. These ideas give me tremendous power to face the challenges of living in Nigeria by believing in the country’s future beyond its present failed leadership.
Power of Trusting makes me act as if something that does not exist actually exists. I can look at the world, ignore what the five senses say, and realize that the highest place within me can give the answer I seek. If there is anything I have not been able to get, it is because I have not asked the right question within me, so I don’t need to covet or steal another person’s property.
I have come to know that I am energy. Everything in the universe has frequencies – they all vibrate according to the Source. Science has proved that every element has atoms that vibrate at particular frequencies in alignment. If anything is misaligned it will not perform its function and that is exactly what easily happens to human beings, in which case animals and things are more aligned than most of us who are totally, completely misaligned. From this truth I realized that the problem of the world stems from the fact that people have neglected God–consciousness to appreciate ego–consciousness. I have to be aligned with God before recognizing how my relationship with the Source and others on the planet can work. The alignment is all about giving, serving, allowing, and surrendering. I am not supposed to be down here but up there with God- consciousness but I no longer understand my Godly image left behind when I was a baby. I am now part of the campaign to find our real nature, to get back the lost sense of our own divinity. It is gladdening that I can now understand how I lost the sense of my own divinity and how I can get it back by relating with the universe using the seven aforementioned ideas.
The ideas in this book have opened my eyes to see the relationship between intuition and love. As an intuitive, my mind is opened to be filled with love to understand and listen to the universe. The world becomes a lovely place if all human are filled with love to overcome fear and suspicion of one another. We came from an infinite, beautiful, loving, and kind Source, but we easily forget we are more connected than we think. The Source is not a separate, isolated entity elsewhere but is connected to all things. Any good or bad thing I do to others is indirectly done to me. There are some things I can no longer be comfortable to say or do.
Apart from fear and doubts, another enemy of miracle that I have to conquer is ego or self–centeredness. I must know what I am up against before I can conquer it. I have come to know that the challenge in the planet is that majority is filled with selfishness whereby people don’t bat their eyelids to hurt a fellow human being. We no longer follow the Golden Rule but our ego has made us to see ourselves as the gold that makes the rules. We forget that the color of skin, money, or status that we boast of is held in trust for the Owner, everything has to be given away ultimately, and in the end there is nothing to own. The happiest moment of our lives is when we give something good to others. Ego is the reason for closed minds and even closed hands and fists. Intuition insists I live in the moment with less and less expectations, but more and more giving. It begins with me to get the planet sustained by sharing this wisdom with others, that we may all become a nice blend of inner wisdom and outer happiness.
4. Quotes: Are there brief quotes from the book which really got your attention? If so, please list and comment on them.
“Life is continually seeking answers.”
Life seeks answers to questions that lend life its drama. What we notice in the world about us through our intellect, memory, and intuition are answers to questions we unconsciously asked. We don’t notice the answers we are receiving because we did not know when we unconsciously asked them.
“What make your life different from mine are largely the questions we ask ourselves.”
The important thing in life is to know what questions we should be asking. If we don’t ask the right questions we’ll keep on getting the wrong answers. In linear thinking, answers follow questions but in intuition, questions follow answer. After receiving an answer, further questions may be asked to get more information.
“To become intuitive is to become a questioner.”
Intuition is “set in motion” by a question. The question focuses our intuition and tells us what we need to notice in the world around us. Every second there are a million questions within us waiting to be answered, and a million answers in the process of being revealed. We put our intuitive and logical mind to work when we start asking the right questions. When we ask the right questions, our mind is forced to find empowering answers.
“We are active participants in the creation of our realities.”
Many of us may not know, but in a sense, we are always creating. We can create success by telling our subconscious mind what we want to happen. That is why we have to be careful what we wish for or what we notice because we may get it.
Noticing goes beyond our immediate surroundings, it extends to imagination of any place and any time. This is the principle behind creative visualisation tools, like dream-board. Training intuition is simply a matter of knowing what to send to our conscious mind – learning how and where to shift our focus, or attention. Where we find ourselves seeing only the negative we can consciously chose what we notice.
“No two snowflakes are alike, but their ability to lay together in communality creates a snowfall.”
Intuition makes us to see our connectedness to God, to our planet and to one another. We are intimately affected by one another’s experiences, either good or bad, in some unconscious way; hence it is wise to follow the Golden Rule: Do unto others as you want them to do unto you.
“The building is growing too tall and we are, somewhat reluctantly, returning to its base to strengthen the foundation.”
The challenges we face in our planet today is a result of lack of attention to our spirituality which is the foundation. The level that all things are connected is not defined by space and time- a place where there is no past or present or future. Man makes these distinctions so as to give a kind of structure to the world and not to miss our appointments. Things that can’t be measured transcend life and give meaning to our existence. Any physical development without spiritual understanding will fail in the end as we can see in the nuclear war fears, climatic-change problems, and other things we are doing to “make the building grow taller”. We overestimate logic and intellect and underestimate intuitive reasoning. We sell our birthright for a pot of porridge.
5. Is there anything in the book that you do not understand or are unclear about, or are there ideas which you disagree with and if so, why?
There is nothing in the book that I did not understand or unclear about, and I disagree with no idea.
6. Did the book contain exercises for the reader to complete? If so, did you complete all the exercises and did you find them helpful?
The book contains 26 exercises for the reader to complete. I completed all of them and found them helpful in developing my intuitive ability.
7. Was there anything you read in the book that you would like to comment on that was not covered in the previous questions? If so, please comment.
I have nothing else to comment about in the book.
Please rate the following questions on a scale of 1 to 10. Ten is good and one is poor.
A. How interesting was it to read? 10
B. How helpful were the contents? 10
C. How easy was it to read? 9
D. Would you recommend it to others? 10
E. What is the overall rating you would give it? 10
Become a Magnet to Money Through the Sea of the Unlimited Consciousness
Assessment by Ayoade Anthony ( Nigeria)
1. What is the main idea that the author is trying to convey in the book?
The main idea of the book is to teach people how to become free from the failure symptoms of fear and ignorance, to reach the depth of our souls so as to achieve unimaginable peace and confidence required to serve others. The book is in two parts, the first part of the book, “How to become a magnet to money,” reveals Universal Laws and how to use them to get inspired and successful. The second part of the book, “The Sea of unlimited consciousness” addresses the doubts and confusion we face as we go through different levels of consciousness and how we can overcome the physical, mental, and emotional limitations to grow to higher levels of spirituality.
2. What were the seven ideas which were personally most important to you and why? List these seven ideas followed by an explanation after each one as to why it was important to you. Use personal examples from your own life.
i.. TO Become a Magnet to Money, we must have prosperity consciousness
In the word “Consciousness” and the spiritual understanding of it, is contained all the knowledge or awareness that is to be known about God, man, and the universe. Man can create a richly rewarding, satisfying and peaceful life by learning the laws governing the universe. To attract any good thing, one must first of all have an open mind, avoid ignorance and understand that all things in the universe work based on natural laws. It is revealing to me that happiness is a root of prosperity consciousness that has to be planted in my subconscious mind before I can feel the attraction to wealth and success. My consciousness determines my thoughts, feelings, and actions- they are the seeds that I sow, and hence they ultimately determine my prosperity.
A happy and prosperity-conscious mind thinks, and feels prosperous while a scarcity-conscious mind will think and act based on lack and limitations and will attract more of the same. My mentor always tell us during meetings to confess that, “I am a generous billionaire,” unfortunately many do not think they can be prosperous so they refuse to say it with passion. To be truly wealthy is to first of all be in a happy and prosperous state of mind; seeing money as a tool in our trust for greater good of the universe. To develop prosperity consciousness, I have to see, hear, think, smell, and feel abundance and no limitations, not blaming anyone or anything and thinking that money is evil. I have started disallowing so many “present results” from ruling my thinking: stock market reports, sales reports, doctor’s reports, bank statements and so on. “Present results” work against what the mind needs to prosper, however based on my consciousness, I have my goals, I only need to discipline myself to think the way I have to think and to act the way I have to act, and talk the way I have to talk to achieve them.
This book contains a downloadable song that I enjoy so much; listening to it changes my mood. The book also mentioned four concepts that help my mind in developing prosperity consciousness to address the scarcity challenges of my environment.
One: I must begin everyday with love in my heart and the attitude that my life has a new start.
Two: There is always enough time to do what must be done if I learn to create time.
Three: I will always have all the energy I need to do anything I’ll ever want to do. All the energy I need is always available everywhere. I am energy; I only need to release it through desire.
Four: Everything vibrates in the universe. My vibration controls my actions and what I am attracting into my life.
ii. Powers of decision, persistence, responsibility, and gratitude enhance wealth creation
It is revealing that I have resisted making certain decisions because “old habits die hard,” but once I identify what I want, I am supposed to go for it even if it scares me. If something scares or excites at the same time then it’s a great goal, and once a real decision is made in the heart to go for it, the universe will help to realize it. Decision-making is a mental discipline that can virtually eliminate conflict and confusion in our lives but indecision sets up internal conflicts that wreck havoc on our mental and emotional power. The universe does not entertain stagnancy- a very basic law of the universe is, “create or disintegrate”. Everything is moving.
To create wealth, superior skills or any other thing will not make up for persistence or ability to continue doing something in spite of opposition or difficulty. Taking action with focus is helpful as it leaves no time for fear and writing goals down in form of daily action list is important. When the power of decision and power of persistence with a planned daily action list are employed, one becomes irresistible to money and success. Preparing a daily action list of a maximum of 6 things consecutively for 30 days makes it become a habit, this idea makes me become mindful and get organized to overcome procrastination. By first of all having a burning desire, persistence becomes automatic and no obstacle will be too big to overcome. Persistence is all about attitude and certainty; the inner knowing that one will get to the top. It makes one leave the foot hill to climb the mountain while seeing the obstacles as necessary challenges to give strength.
The third habit that Proctor mentioned to attract money has to do with the reason why people couldn’t finish or sometimes even start working on their dreams and projects: Lack of responsibility. I happen to be one of those who sacrifice so much for others to get paid in order to pay my bills. The way out of this mentality is to start pursuing my own dream and see myself as if I am being paid a lot of money to do it.
Gratitude, one of the many facets of love is the fourth habit that is needed to become a changed person and attract wealth. The mistake most of us make is that we are only grateful for the big things we can see that comes to us, instead of being grateful for all things and that which we do want before it appears. The power of being grateful is beyond human understanding. It creates miracles and enormous success by bringing opportunities. Based on this advice, I had to write a list of things and people that I am grateful for and appreciate. It was surprising to me the number of names of people from whom I have received, and the positive mood the exercise created in my mind really got me into a place of gratitude and appreciation. I have to promise myself to keep doing the exercise from time to time. I now keep a gratitude register for this purpose where I also write at least five things I appreciate daily before sleeping at night, not forgetting to include the smile or little assistance a person gave which I used to take for granted.
iii. We create our own future through meditation, intuition, and creative visualization
Practice of meditationtransforms consciousness by getting consciously connected in silence with the higher consciousness or soul and the Universe, to become alive in spirit to see, feel and hear the still small voice of our soul. Having a conscious realization of my unity with the Infinite Intelligence who has all riches helps in attracting what I want. Life becomes magical when I become one with the Inner Power that is within me and awaken my Oneness with the Universe. To accomplish this, my mind has to be re-focused by creating time to meditate, to shut out all the wrong thoughts and emotions I pick up unconsciously from millions of people in the world that make me feel bad. To create what I need, it is important to live only in pure consciousness which attracts love and abundance and takes away ego and wrong actions. The signs are there in the world today to show that majority of people are in a collective coma and they don’t even know it.
Intuition means we are in tune with God; there is no duality but oneness with the Higher Power. Here, we are easily guided to all the good and success in our lives by thoughts that quietly come to us, quiet knowing and guidance that grant us peace of mind and trust. Only a few people have the mystical experience of directly listening to the infinite to be controlled by the Spirit. Majority cannot create a great future because they easily pick up wrong thoughts and emotions from all types of people around them. Many of the things they think are really not their own thoughts. Any thought that makes us feel bad should not be entertained; it is usually other people’s thought. We really do not need another person telling us our future if we know how to take away the clog from our minds for our consciousness to be clear, allowing our intuition to flow through to our conscious awareness. I know that anytime I feel fear and not experiencing true joy in my heart is the time to get in tune with the Higher Power. I become happy when I know that I am being guided from on high. When my soul speaks to me, I will know whom to speak to, when to speak to them, where to go and where not to going order to get what I want- this is the creative plane of life, meaning that I can create the future I want.
Creative visualization teaches me that through visualization, ideas and opportunities will begin to come to bring what I want to reality because the subconscious mind cannot differentiate between a real object and a picture of the object. My responsibility is to get into that love vibration or feelings of joy as if what I want had been received.
iv. There is more to life than human experience of what we see, hear, and do everyday.
Lack of experiential knowledge of the spirit of God in us makes us experience thoughts and impressions from over 6 billion other souls on this planet by virtue of our exposure to internet and satellite television. These bad influences make us think we love God by going to the place of worship but our actions show that we are mostly concerned with self. We still react strongly if people don’t meet up to our expectation; we debate and use our standard to judge others and self. We are still being fooled by appearance, looking for what is wrong outside instead of looking within and seeing others as work in progress. We are not aware that we co-create our own world; so we ought to take responsibility for our experience, good or bad. Because we don’t want to take responsibility for our lives, we keep playing the blame game, so as to stop feeling any pain. But the pain will ultimately rear its head in some other way even if we don’t wish to admit it. The suppressed pain plus anger come later and are taken out on innocent people. We are better off admitting we feel hurt and forgive all concerned including ourselves and move on. For love to thrive we have to do away with any negative judgment and “holier than thou” attitude or self – pity. Attempting to judge others is futile, it is our ego in action – it does not want us to feel less than but it doesn’t know as much as the timeless Divine Presence within us.
Ignorance of life beyond human experience has made me judge good- intentioned people negatively in the past. In 2002, I gave a job to someone whose spiritual consciousness was greater than my own: my wrong judgment made me to maltreat him due to some mistakes he made. I was too clogged in my mind at the time not to judge based on appearance. Fortunately, something brought us back together many years later at a time when my consciousness had grown and he is now helpful to me. My new consciousness now helps me in raising my awareness and vibration by being more mindful- being happy in the here and now, thereby handling my relationships better. I raise my awareness by beginning to appreciate Divine Presence, studying, asking questions, and looking within, seeing the beauty of all things, becoming positive and happy in the moment. To accomplish this, I found Michelle’s downloaded songs, meditation practice, and other mind tools helpful in clearing the clog in my soul.
Different experiences can create awareness: Reading a book, attending a seminar, a particular word from someone, and so on. My turning point came when someone challenged me to share with the audience the purpose of my life during a seminar in 2003. My heart became opened to other people’s experiences and I started looking for ways to be of service, I began to see the world in a new light, feeling more joyous and confident meeting other like- minded souls and organizations like IIGL attracted me.
I would have avoided unnecessary ridicule or debate and strained relationships through so many unsolicited advices I had given to people in the past if I had the idea that there is more to life than physical experiences. I have learnt not to give unsolicited advice to every Dick and Harry unless I feel the person is ready to hear, instead I strive to simply be the example by demonstrating a good life- some people have to go through certain experience to get to higher level.
Furthermore, the above idea is important to me in the sense that it teaches that what I give is beyond physical experiences, so I have to show divine love or give without fear and expectations for it to be returned. With this I give from the heart and I discovered that it is truly satisfying and joyful because it is done without expecting anything in return. I know I have received from the Universe what I am giving hence I have no credit for it apart from Infinite Love. The stress of expectation and the pain of ingratitude from people are absolutely removed because I am aware that I will always reap elsewhere what I sowed, my life will always be fulfilled and disappointment will vanish from my experience. I can remember many years ago when I told someone that he had disappointed me, he quickly told me that I have disappointed myself. The person unknowingly taught me a great lesson about life: no one can disappoint me unless I disappoint myself by expecting too much from people. To overcome the dilemma of giving with expectation now, I ask myself: “Am I showing love, or doing this act or giving this gift as a trade?” This question has helped me to deal with my dilemma concerning the money I loaned to a person over four years ago who refused to pay me back. Now, I can easily forget the experience when I consider the answer to the above question.
By understanding that life goes beyond physical experiences, I try to avoid all tendencies to judge by appearance; judgmental attitude is the ego which is a self-righteous funny delusion to truth. Avoiding negative judgments takes away competitive state of mind whereby one becomes less reactionary and less judgmental. It is now clear to me that my reactionary attitude towards people actually reveals that my ego is still in power over my life, and to live beyond my physical experiences I have to leave this competitive plane of life by becoming an observer rather than a reactor. My consciousness moves up when I no longer consider certain questions: Who is more spiritual? Is my faith stronger than that person? I move higher when I no longer judge someone’s spiritual inferiority to mine or my superiority to anyone, but I begin to see things beyond the surface, not categorizing people based on income, age, appearance, background or other shallow judgments. I no longer need to argue unnecessarily with people, and prosperity starts manifesting as life becomes more joyous and more meaningful.
To live beyond human experience, it has been revealed that I must be disciplined in my daily spiritual practices and regular meditation, learning in inner silence, letting go and surrendering to God’s power needed by me to set things in motion into deeper spiritual levels. Once my intentions are set, God’s Grace is my fuel and source of power to keep things going.
v. Our soul is our inner power, our observer and our inner voice.
Our willpower has limitations to attract success and money and to release sorrow from our life, it gets our energies exhausted and make us to give up until we open our hearts to God.
The good we need surrounds us and will appear by letting go and going within. As we practice meditation, we clear the clog from our hearts and clean our emotional bodies. We begin to release certain memories and emotions that we have been using sheer willpower to suppress all these while. The ego will do its best to hold on as we go within to take the clog away, but we should not listen to it. We must keep doing our daily meditation, and mindfulness practices even if our ego says it is not working. Our small self or ego has no power other than to play with our thoughts. It loves living in the past and future. Soon we stop focusing on what we are not getting from the world and feel so much gratitude and our lives will become one of wonder, joy, peace and love.
With these ideas, Michelle Blood makes me understand the power of my soul and what I need to do to make it powerful, it includes avoiding influences that transmit other people’s wrong vibration and energy. I take time to be alone daily and meditate to enjoy life in joy, as opposed to fleeting human happiness. As I meditate, the information I receive is vital and strategic resource that shapes my daily life. The quality of the information received helps me to perform better and contribute more to humanity. It is good to note that if I had created anything I don’t like in my life, I can change it.
vi. Living in the moment is where the bliss comes from.
To cope with the future, we must learn to embrace the present. There is only the present, only this moment. God does not live in the past or the future, and I am one with Him in the present, here now is where the Source lives. With this consciousness, I am in the timelessness; every moment is felt as a continuous moment. My spiritual knowledge as a Christian is made clearer when I remember that God told Moses that His name is I AM That I AM if Pharaoh asked him. I AM is a present tense that aptly describes a Being that is ever present, with no past or future. To get to this level of living in the present, daily meditation practices becomes indispensable to give power, peace and wisdom from within. I can now begin to learn more and more to understand the power of trust and surrender, to truly let go and let God, to become ego-free and instrument of God’s Grace. At this level I become Love, in silence I feel the Love: silence and intention is the key to connecting in the silence where God can be heard.
The above idea is personally important to me because it makes me see the need to raise the level of my consciousness, that I can love God through the people He created, that love in my heart for God and Humanity is always a gift that defines me. I must strive to create balance in the world by the Light I spread through my higher consciousness. I can become agent of peace that lift people up when the power of this love is focused into my relationships, and other areas of life, I can become happy and playful such that people love being around me.
To attain this consciousness, I have to avoid distracting websites and TV, and stop other wrong vibrations from interfering with my mind. I have to embrace being in the silence and listening, meditating, and being in nature as much as possible. To live in the moment, I have to dress well: Better clothes transmit higher energy. It is blissful to have the awareness of the Divine presence being with me day and night to prepare my way. At this level I no longer have anything to fear from people, places, or things- people are only souls and what people do is not who they are. To prosper, God in whose kingdom I live is the only source who provides all my needs according to His riches in glory; He is the only power, not the banks, not people or government. Stepping into the present moment takes me out of past regrets or future worries to be at the driver’s seat to my destination. Here I know that joy, peace, are not states to be attained but are already with me, I only need to access them. Confidence and gratitude comes at this level by experiencing this truth from within, irrespective of all circumstances in every area of my life.
vii. The ultimate goal is to become the sea of unlimited consciousness.
This idea reveals that there is no difference between the swimmer and the sea as both has become the sea of unlimited consciousness- This is Eternity itself and only a few people have become One with Eternity. There are souls who are no more here in physical form teaching us from above whenever we decide to connect to their Light. As a personal experience, I tap into the Divinity of Jesus Christ through contemplating and meditating on his words. Truth may not come in the color that we expect, that is why we have to mind the message not the messenger. Judgmental human ego- personality makes humans blind to see eternity. For example, I can understand the reason why the Pharisees in the days of Christ on earth did not respect him – they were blinded by his simplicity, and his background. Enlightened ones are however full of light as they live in the place where there is no time or space, where there is bliss and no categorization- just Eternity.
I need to love God and dedicate my life to Truth and Love until the end to become the Sea of Unlimited consciousness and be free. This idea makes me understand the message of Jesus Christ that knowing the Truth sets me free.
3. How will these ideas or lessons help you in a practical way, both in your daily personal life and in helping you to create a better world? If so, how?
To solve a problem, one has to know its source. The conflicts in my mind which had hitherto affected my emotions and sense of direction are caused by people whose thoughts and vibrations I had been picking as a psychic being unconsciously. Creating a new world begins with me by being careful about what I hear, where I go and who I associate with.The awareness that everyone is psychic and has the ability to transmit and receive thoughts makes it imperative for me to develop my mystic connection to Spirit. In this way I become more powerful to make better decisions in the world, as the mystic message received is directly from the Infinite, rather than the negative energies of other people. Awareness of universal laws and how it works makes me operate in the creative plane of life such that I don’t need to compete, complain, or condemn anyone. The ideas in the book reveal that my mind is the most valuable gift from the Creator; it can be used to work with the laws of the Universe to create abundant health, which they say is wealth.
Everything in the universe vibrates, it has energy and everything transmits energy. Thoughts and words are energy similar to the energy that makes us communicate wireless irrespective of distance. This awareness makes me to see that what I say, hear, and see affect my vibration and aura; it affects my behavior positively and places me in a better position to create a better world.
The more I understand the mind and how it works, the more I become a magnet to money and a person of good personality. The awareness had been given to me that what I want to have, to be, or to have can be impressed on my subconscious mind consciously over and over to make it a reality. The idea that my consciousness determines my attraction to money and success opened my eyes to see the futility of my past struggles and its negative effect on my relationships in the world. Like majority of people, I had been ignorant of the Universal Laws of Creativity, and where ignorance exists, bondage, fear and competition thrive. There is however no competition in life; I can create my own magic without hurting anybody, once I can use my mind to practice meditation, intuition, and creative visualization. The sky is big enough to accommodate all birds without hindrance. There is plenty for everyone; I only need to exercise powers of decision, persistence, responsibility and gratitude to create my own wealth. With this awareness, a better world can be created when we all have abundance mentality. Never do I need to play the blame–game again, or do things to self – sabotage my success. The ideas in this book align with others I have gained in my IIGL studies to break my chain of ignorance which strengthens my desire to set others free as well by sharing this knowledge.
Living in the moment is where the bliss comes from, and it happens by expecting less from people. This concept reveals the source of the problems in the world today which stem from the majority who love people because they want people to love them back, they expect too much and get disappointed thereby becoming prone to other failure symptoms. By transforming my consciousness, I no longer need to have a broken-heart for any failed relationship, knowing that my act of goodness is not for human reasons but for higher reasons. No matter what happens, nothing can take away my joy, peace, confidence and gratitude; this puts me in a better position to contribute in the world. The world therefore becomes better when we all begin to live in the moment by getting our souls united with the Source to guide and talk to us. By living in the moment, I can always feel happy with myself and with what life is giving me, not what happened yesterday or what is going to happen tomorrow. If all of us understand this message, a better world will be created: the solution to our challenges lies inside us, not outside. For light to enter my consciousness I must be present in the here and now, taking worries out of my mind; to consciously separate my mind from my body while I let go and enjoy the peace I need in the world.
The ultimate goal is to become the sea of unlimited consciousness, at this level our inner world becomes a paradise. It is not enough for me to preach this idea but I have to live it, to help others aspire for the goal whereby our conscience begins to rule our actions as we no longer need anyone to tell us what is right; then joy, peace and prosperity begins to reign in the world.
4. Quotes: Are there brief quotes from the book which really got your attention? If so, please list and comment on them.
“Choosing the right partner will have everything to do with our success or lack of it.”
The master-mind between all kinds of relationships or partnerships can bring us to heights of such connectedness and joy and to great success or its opposite. There is a magical union when we are blessed to choose a partner who truly loves God. We are bound to succeed once we have synergy with a partner who understands and operate in agreement with the Universal laws of nature.
“If it doesn’t scare you a little then your want is not Big Enough.”
If you are scared to do something, do it scared. Fear can be handled by running towards it, as long as the goal is Big Enough. We don’t need to run away from fear but use it as a weapon. The quote is powerful to change any limiting belief and thoughts about fear.
“We are powerful, beautiful spiritual beings simply having a physical experience.”
Light is being transmitted to each and every one of us all of the time because we are spiritual beings, but most are too clogged by the world’s ideas and thoughts to feel it.
As a light, our consciousness makes us have the right attitude towards our physical experiences, and have the power to dissolve all darkness that comes our way. Our spiritual relationships are far more precious than physical experiences in the sense that any physical relationship that is divorced from spiritual is like body without soul.
5. Is there anything in the book that you do not understand or are unclear about, or are there ideas which you disagree with and if so, why?
There is nothing in the book that I did not understand or unclear about, and I disagree with no idea.
6. Did the book contain exercises for the reader to complete? If so, did you complete all the exercises and did you find them helpful?
The book contains exercises for the reader to complete. I completed all of them and found them helpful.
7. Was there anything you read in the book that you would like to comment on that was not covered in the previous questions? If so, please comment.
I have nothing else to comment about in the book.
Please rate the following questions on a scale of 1 to 10. Ten is good and one is poor.
A. How interesting was it to read? 10
B. How helpful were the contents? 10
C. How easy was it to read? 10
D. Would you recommend it to others? 10
E. What is the overall rating you would give it? 10
Educating for Human Greatness
Assessment by Ayoade Anthony (Nigeria)
The main idea behind the book is to give the principles for nurturing the qualities of human greatness and contributive behavior of each child. Education curriculum and policies should focus on diverse needs of individual learners rather than on the needs of education authorities; in this way student achievement in curriculum is not the main goal of education, but as a means to help students grow in all dimensions of human greatness.
Human beings are born with freedom of thought, they are each responsible for their own thoughts, so they are responsible for their own learning and behavior. Children are capable of knowing and deciding what learning they should pursue to become great while parents and teachers are to guide them to discover and develop their potentials. The arrangement in public schools to standardize students to make them alike in knowledge, skills and abilities do not effectively measure student growth as it disregards the qualities of human greatness of each child. Human nature must be considered in all attempts to educate human beings, and this entails their innate desire or what they feel as a deep need.
2. What were the seven ideas which were personally most important to you and why? List these seven ideas followed by an explanation after each one as to why it was important to you. Use personal examples from your own life.
i. Educational curriculum should not be viewed as a goal, but as a tool to help students grow in seven priorities.
The seven dimensions of human greatness-identity, inquiry, interaction, initiative, imagination, intuition, and integrity complement academic knowledge thereby making students fulfill their potential as valuable contributors to society.
Identity answers the question “Who am I and what can I become?”
No human being according to Gardner has less than nine areas of intelligence through which to contribute. Students start to build an identity of greatness when they begin to discover and develop their individual abilities, interests, gifts and talents. When teachers aim to help students find something in which they can excel, it boosts self esteem.
Standardizing students based on academic achievements limits confidence, competence and a strong desire to be a contributor.
Next to identity is the second dimension of greatness – inquiry. It answers the question,
“How can I learn?” It stimulates curiosity in students, awakens a sense of wonder and appreciation for nature and develops power to ask important penetrating questions. Neil Postman and Charles Weingartner stated that, “Inquiry activates different senses, attitudes and perceptions. It generates a different, bolder and more potent kind of intelligence. It will cause everything about education to change.” Due to the environment we grew up, we lost our sense of curiosity and wonderment, haven been accused of asking too much questions as children. Fortunately, we can learn what we have lost, according to Stoddard, there are twenty-two “question starter words” that can be used to help magnify the innate curiosity of every person: What, why, when, where, who, was, which, would, were, how, is, do, does, did, may, are, could, should, shall, will, can, have. A student can gain the power of enquiry by using appropriate question–starting words to investigate a known person, place, thing or event to generate questions. Students learn better when subjects are taught as processes of inquiry.
The third dimension of greatness is interaction. It answers the question, “What kind of relationships should I develop with other people?” Seeking to understand others first in all things enhances interaction and helps us to observe the Golden Rule. We need enough self–esteem and humility or good sense of identity before we can interact with other people and understand their perspective. We also need to know how to listen intently to others and how to ask questions that do not offend in order to interact well with people. Bullying, and other vices are related to lack of self-esteem that results from failure of the school or home to help a child discover and develop individual talents as well as learn how to interact respectfully. Power of interaction promotes courtesy, caring, communication and cooperation but competition does the opposite in learning. Creating hands-on experience in teaching all subjects makes students work in teams to help one another work on projects, problems and investigations, this helps them build the power of interaction as well as the powers of identity and inquiry. My mathematics teacher developed my interest in the subject when he started weekly Questions and Answers interactive sessions with us in my final year in secondary school, and I had my best grade in the subject in my West African School Certificate examination. The love and kind interaction that the exercise generated between the class and the teacher made me discover that mathematics is my easiest subject, and motivated me to study engineering.
The fourth dimension of greatness is initiative. It answers the question, “How can I use my freedom to control my learning and behavior?” If a student is determined to know something and exerts his will to do so, there is very little that can be done to stop him from learning it. The human will is a powerful force that can be nurtured in students by providing choices, freedom, and helping them become responsible for their own learning and behavior. Everyone has self-motivation to learn when all inhibitions are taken away; these must be identified and addressed. Initiative fosters self-directed learning, will power and self-evaluation.
Another power needed to become a contributor in the world is imagination. It answers the question, “In what ways can I do common things in uncommon and better ways?” Each student must develop the ability to nurture creativity and creative expression. Involving children in music and the arts, according to Michael Ballam, stimulate imagination and creativity which, in turn, feeds the ability to learn in all other areas. Art, science, and music experiences can be used to open up the minds of students to see, feel, and hear beyond the ordinary senses.
The sixth dimension of greatness is intuition or sixth sense, the ability to feel things spiritually with the heart as well as the mind. It answers the question, “How can I develop my heart to feel the difference between truth and falsity?” The small voice inside us resides in the heart. We were born with the capacity to discern good from evil, and right from wrong. The power of trusting the feelings of our hearts or conscience enhances our intuition or emotional intelligence which makes us recognize the truth with the heart -the residence of the human soul and the organ that identifies truth. The human heart is connected spiritually to the great wisdom of the universe. It is an organ for thinking that is many times more powerful than the brain. More time and efforts ought to be spent educating the heart than the brain.
Integrity is the seventh dimension of greatness. It answers the question, “What can I do to be true to myself and others at all times?” It is in the heart that we know truth; therefore integrity is linked to intuition. It is important to help children to learn how to “feel” the truth and act on it even if it is painful to face up to a mistake. Integrity is a combination of courage to act and humility to admit a mistake. Children who had a positive sense of self-image or identity find it easier to show integrity. Parents and teachers can help them to develop strength of character, by doing things that are consistent and teaching them how to become responsible for their own thoughts and behavior.
ii. Valuing and nurturing positive human diversity in human beings lead to greatness.
I keep remembering one of my brothers who had not been able to go beyond high school for not having a credit in Mathematics despite having credits in other subjects. The admission requirements in Nigeria stipulate that everyone aspiring for admission into any higher institution must have credits in both Mathematics and English, irrespective of the course of study. Education authorities have no regard for human diversity; unfortunately many parents are guilty of the same offence in that they force their children to read certain courses.
It gladdens me that I am undergoing a course at IIGL where I am being given a different educational experience that nurtures individual diversity. The course holds every individual responsible for his or her own learning and development and gives freedom of choice to students about what to learn. Experience shows that most high school graduates don’t know what they want to do with their “formal education” as they have not learnt how to use their natural assets and gifts to make the world better.
iii. Drawing forth from learners their latent, potential existence makes them great.
Public schools do not exist to develop human potential as long as they fail to encourage purposeful, creative thought and action that bring out leaner’s potential.
Education is more than the commonly accepted meaning whereby teachers give systematic instruction, and pour facts into the heads of youngsters in formal schools. In the teach-and-test system, school authorities are only concerned with knowledge that is numerically measurable. It results in shallow easily-forgotten knowledge that has no deep personal knowing and can’t stand the test of time. Real Education is supposed to be a process of drawing out the giant that is already within every individual. By adding up the undeveloped potential of millions of people who have already gone through our public schools, we have a huge human development deficit on our hands. All of us have a great reservoir of talent lying dormant, waiting to be awakened.
In public school system, children are forced to overcome deficits arising from prolonged instructions given to them. Whereas it is through development of a person’s own recognized assets that deficits can be overcome. Often a person will see the need to overcome a deficit while pursuing and building on an asset. A person who is developing a gift in a particular area often feels intense need to improve reading or writing skills. Here, desire and reason to become literate is reinforced, and action follows need. Every child has an internal blueprint that must be discovered and followed so as to draw forth the potential. Extraordinary teachers and parents have the intuition and love to see the greatness in every child and know how to bring out the best in each one.
I.Q. tests measure no more than eight out of more than 140 different ways of thinking that the human mind can function, according to a study by J.P. Guildford. Prof. Calvin Taylor, a behavioral scientist introduced 6 creative talents that we all have in varying degree: academic, productive thinking, planning, communicating, forecasting, and decision making.
There are many functions of the mind waiting to be activated because schools and homes recognize only the lowest forms of thinking. Howard Gardner introduced the concept that we all have eleven intelligences, rather than one: musical, bodily– kinesthetic, logical–mathematical, linguistic, spatial, interpersonal, intrapersonal, naturalistic, spiritual, existential, and moral. We have a matrix of these intelligences that is different from one another. Only the logical–mathematical and linguistic intelligences are developed in formal schools, children/students who are weak in them are looked down upon. I still remember one of my teachers who noticed and encouraged my interpersonal intelligence in the class- an action that made me realize my asset beyond any academic asset that I possessed. That singular action had a positive effect on my self–esteem, and to me he remains an extraordinary teacher till date.
iv. Learning how to give freedom with the right kind of loving control build greatness.
This idea rests on the belief in the right of children to build themselves, and direct their own learning since humans are born with freedom of thought and thus responsible for their own thoughts and actions. Teachers are worried about ways to get students engaged in learning the required material, but motivation to learn is inherent within every human being. When a student is asked to learn other people’s knowledge, he/she is less engaged and does not learn out of curiosity but to pass the test.
Hard–hearted or stubborn children can be transformed if they are freed for self- directed learning; for example, a child is allowed to choose personal projects for development. When the authoritarian role is discarded, greater understanding and rapport are built between the teacher and the child. By creating greater opportunity for self-growth (creativity, initiative, imagination, self–discipline, self–acceptance, and understanding) there will be fewer drop-outs and failures.
The philosophy of IIGL is not different from the idea of respecting the freedom of learners to decide what they will learn, how they will learn, and when they will learn it. The best learning takes place when the desire to learn comes from the mind of the learner, students learn for the joy and sake of learning to satisfy internal needs. Knowledge sinks into the bones when we are not learning to meet up people’s requirements but our own needs. I can remember how my academic performance changed when my father took away his authoritarian role and treated me as someone who had a free-will. I was made to see my potential and power of will to harness it and I became self motivated to succeed.
True freedom is unavoidably tied to responsibility and integrity or truth. The more we develop the qualities of responsibility and integrity, the more we become free. The road to freedom is tied to the humility to admit mistakes and courage to make amendments. A kite flies best when it is held in check by a cord in the hands of a skilful owner. The kite is no longer free when the cord is cut. When the kite is given exactly the right amount of freedom and restraint, it can climb higher than the same kite in the hands of an inexperienced person – even when there is very little wind. Children, like kites need the right amount of freedom with right kind of loving control to help them rise to their full potential. In relating with others where rules are needed, I allow them participate freely in making the rules – by giving them a sense of self–worth, they strive to live up to expectation. Obeying a law begrudgingly is not the same as if it is obeyed cheerfully out of free will and choice.
There are different winds of kites just as there are different kinds of children. I had the childhood experience of flying kites. The signal given by the kite and wind through the cord to the nerve receptors and brain determine how to fly the kite. Giving too much tension pulls the kite down and giving too much freedom makes it descend. So we can make children fly by activating our insight and sensitive perceptions with unconditional love to provide the right amount of freedom and encouragement for them in their efforts to fly.
v. Nurturing children’s innate curiosity helps them grow in greatness.
A program that brings out children’s curiosity will draw forth their potential and make them exercise autonomy, free wills, and responsibility to grow in self worth, curiosity, and communication. One of the experiences that I have not forgotten in my secondary school days was how my literature teacher used to ask us to study a book and each of us was given the chance to share what had been learnt in front of the class. The teacher’s method was uncommon but it gave many of us the opportunity to show that we are gifted one way or the other. I can now understand the reason why one of my teachers used to tell us that most of the learning takes place during Question and Answer period of any presentation. This period enhances interaction and inquiry and I personally observe that such sessions make learning more interesting. Imposed learning is shallow and temporary, while learning gained from personal inquiry is deep and enduring.
Each of us are unique, so any attempt to standardize what we need to know as it is being done in traditional education cannot bring out the potential in us. Attempts to make the children produce a predetermined outcome or response as the state-mandated curriculum dictate are counter-productive. It is noteworthy that Richard Branson and many of the great people in the world today did not possess academic degrees. I always tell my children that once they have the basic education, they can identify a line of interest and pursue it to become an expert. A child knows what is already in his or her brain beyond the artificial curriculum being imposed on them. The genuine curriculum consists of the real stuff of our environment being assimilated through our senses; people, plant, animals, insects – all living things and non living things, and other media that are designed to offer information and to generate thoughts and questions.
Teachers, in homes and schools will raise better children by realizing the difference between authoritarian, imposed learning and learning that comes from personal seeking. Knowledge obtained from personal inquiry is self-constructed and then used for some future purpose that is unique to the user. Bill Gates, for example, was able to give the wonderful computer innovations to the world because he decided to make creative use of the knowledge obtained through personal inquiry. He refused to be fettered by state-mandated curriculum in the university but decided to pursue personal inquiry of his knowledge of computers outside the public school system. Steve Jobs also became an enigma in the computer industry because he asked questions outside official core curriculum of computer engineering.
I discover that most of the body of knowledge that I was made to cram and “send back to sender” in order to get my engineering degree are not really needed in practice. I can remember a friend of mine who failed his courses in college for trying to solve problems with his own methods rather than the exact methods given by the lecturers. The attitude of the teachers showed that they are paid to just force-feed the prepared information into learner’s minds.
A mother once narrated her experience concerning her son who told her that he is being overwhelmed by her words. The mother who happens to be a personal-development expert could understand that she needed to stop thinking of herself as information dispenser and become active seeking-learner of her son. The most powerful teaching strategy is for a parent or teacher to take an intense interest in a child and learn from him or her – we can best invite inquiry by being examples of curiosity for children.
We can change our attitudes and habits of perceiving the world depending on what we inquire. A person full of curiosity and wonder about the world is a person full of questions, such a person will look at something and see love and beauty, and others will look at the same thing and see fear and ugliness. The idea of nurturing children’s innate curiosity is important to me; it makes me see the reason why direct teaching had not had its right effect on the attitude/behavior of not only children but some adults that I had cause to teach. There is need for me to always invite inquiry from learners if I want my teaching to be effective.
vi. Restoring the teaching profession to a position of trust and respect enhances educating for human greatness.
In the past, teachers used to be regarded as professionals delivering knowledge with love and great skill. Teachers were held up by society with honor and respect. Things started to change when education authorities through the curriculum had to force teachers to start shaping students into a standard mould. The competence of teachers is tied to their ability to make sure all students are able to know and do the same things. There is total disregard for student individuality leading to a decline in student cooperation and discipline. As higher standards are demanded more by the authorities from student performance, the more the teachers try to make the students to rigor, and the more the academic performance of the students goes down. For not being able to mass–produce high flying students, teachers have been losing their credibility over the years.
Wisdom dictates that we can’t keep doing the same thing and expect a different result. Teachers were recently threatened in some states in my country, Nigeria that their promotion will depend on the performance of their students. In a country where unemployment is over 80%, an average teacher has no choice than to do all sorts of things to make sure that the children pass their exams. They have no luxury of leaving the profession. In this scenario, creative teaching does not arise as teachers are told what, when, and how to teach. They dutifully follow the curriculum because the education authority believes the same medication and treatment is good for every patient. In such formal school system, knowledge is plastered on the outside of the brain to pass examinations and is soon washed away.
To restore the teaching profession to a position of trust and respect, teachers should be free to assess the needs of each child and foster his or her growth without being sanctioned. Then, teachers become free to awake the curiosity of students who no longer need to cram textbook knowledge but are exposed to alternative sources of information: The community and the internet become places to learn. As it happens, children begin to enthusiastically seek information to build their own body of knowledge.
vii. Teachers and parents can unite to build schools that educate for human greatness.
Without doubt, by becoming thoughtful and committed, teachers and parents can unite to build schools that educate for human greatness. Teachers need to speak out against education policies that threaten the very existence of good teaching. They need to harness their integrity and stand for what they believe is good for students by seeing teaching as an art, a science, and a calling, all of which is beyond a lock-step manual called a curriculum. Teachers in fact need the dimensions of greatness to build schools that educate for human greatness, such dimensions exhibited by Martin Luther King Jr. with his non-violent crusade against racial discrimination. By operating in same dimensions, Rosa Park raised the consciousness of the blacks in America when she refused one day to go to the back of the bus where blacks were supposed to sit.
Small groups of thoughtful, united citizens can begin to speak against policies that attempt to make students all alike and equal in knowledge and skills. Students, parents and teachers can unite as partners to grow greatness in one another when they know that the real purpose of education is beyond student achievement in what they cram from textbooks.
The whole world can begin to educate for human greatness when parents, teachers and children begin to identify their unique gifts and talents to help one another grow in greatness for the benefit of the world. It is my strong desire to share these ideas and my experiences with everyone I meet and to ultimately build a school that nurtures individual potential. The missing link that I discovered in my “formal education” is the reason why I wrote a book, “Habits of Exemplary People.” When enough people who see the light are united, change will ultimately be unavoidable. Talents and gifts on the level of Einstein, Mozart, and Mother Theresa will be released when special love is used by discerning parents and teachers to draw them out of the children for the benefit of mankind.
3. How will these ideas or lessons help you in a practical way, both in your daily personal life and in helping you to create a better world? If so, how?
Preventive approach to reduction in criminal behavior is when parents and teachers like me unite to help each child gain an identity of self worth early in life and a desire to be a contributor, rather than a burden to society. Today, we have plenty of smart crooks in our society – many who are brilliant but are destroying corporate organizations and nations with their criminal actions. Caring about others beyond self in the world brings out the greatness in individuals. I make my children and listeners appreciate their unique gifts and the gifts of others. As I begin to see beauty in the people of every race, religion, or political persuasion, it brings out positive behavior in them. By valuing diversity, I find some good in others, no matter how bad they may appear, I have to love and cherish every person in the human family as they are – not as I wish they would become.
In USA, recent incidents of mass shootings of fellow students by teenagers came to my mind as I read this book. It happened as a result of failure of parents and the public school system to make these killers see themselves as valuable contributors to their community right from the cradle. This is a challenge to me as a parent. Each child in unique hence each teacher should find out the curriculum content and teaching methods that are best for each child. These “killer-children” have the greatest need that grows more intense with each passing year, but it is not being met – they needed parents and teachers to help them discover self-identity and self-worth and understand the uniqueness of others. This would be a wholesome and early inoculation against the disease that makes people kill a fellow human being on the basis of race, religion or other differences.
The confessions of these murderers practically reveal to me that if identity is embraced as first priority of education, they would not have headed in the wrong direction. When children at early age are made to see their bright future as valuable contributors to their community through their unique gifts, their brains begin to develop strategies for accomplishing the goal, even while they sleep. Trying to mould children to fit a common shoe on the other hand damages the brain. Even though we all have a brain, it is a brain that worked in its own unique way. Each of us is one of a kind!
I equally noted that the society, apart from ignorant education officials is guilty of killing the curiosity of children when they are rebuked for asking too many questions. As children grow up, there is a clear gradual decline in the amount and quality of their questions. With conscious effort, all of us can go back to our early childhood to retrieve our curiosity that had been stolen from us and find joy and wonder again in everything about us, looking at things with fresh eyes.
I have a different perspective in relating with children, I aspire to invite questions from them and also ask many questions about everything, always searching for the best questions to ask the child to enhance creative deep learning. A teacher or parent who does not show the attitude of “know-it-all” will be a better example to the child than others. Children have a voice and want to be heard, giving them this opportunity makes them grow faster in all dimensions of human greatness. We will have a sharp drop in school dropouts if individual differences in background of experiences, learning styles and timetable for learning are respected. It is a fact that “every child can excel” in something, if given enough choices. The prison, for example is full of these dropouts who had not been given the right education. The destruction of lives and properties and the huge cost of keeping the perpetrators of these criminal acts in prison is a ‘lose–lose’ situation in the world.
4. Quotes: Are there brief quotes from the book which really got your attention? If so, please list and comment on them.
“You can’t have unity in any endeavor unless the participants value human diversity.”
We can’t be united in anything unless we value one another. If you have an idea and I have an idea and we exchange ideas, you now have two ideas and I have two ideas together they multiply to other ideas we can share. The total becomes greater than the sum of their parts. To value diversity is to value people and ideas that are different from mine. To value people is to value variety. To value variety is to love all. To love all is to attract love from all.
“You don’t have to be disabled to be different; everybody’s different.”
To have peace and joy we all hope for, we need to learn to recognize and to respect differences in others and treat them like you want them to treat you. Caring and sharing make us be at our best to relate with everybody.
“Knowledge acquired under compulsion obtains no hold on the mind.” (Plato)
There is a big difference between knowledge acquired from finding answers to one’s own questions and knowledge acquired from finding answers to other people’s questions. What is relevant to you may not be of any interest to me. It is the reason why traditional education often fails to make much difference compared to inquiry- based education.
“People cannot learn by having information pressed into their brains.” (Vector Weisskopf)
Knowledge has to be sucked into the brains, not pushed in. first, one must create a state of mind that craves knowledge, interest and wonder. You can teach only by creating an urge to know.
Emerson’s comment is noteworthy in this case: “It is not for you to choose what he shall know, what he shall do.”
“It is more important and useful to look for good questions than it is to look for good answers.”
A person who finds a good answer may close his mind to further inquiry while a person who finds a good question on the same issue may open his mind to further inquiry. The more we know the more we realize how much we don’t know. Looking for questions everywhere brings a new zest for life, a passion for learning that will rub off on everyone.
“The mind is not a vessel to be filled, but a fire to be kindled.”
Everyone is born with fire of curiosity that must be kindled. Giving people instructions on what to do is like filling the mind; telling, explaining and demonstrating what to do to learners is not as effective as inviting them to discuss and analyze various ways to solve a problem. Education serves its purpose when learners are held responsible by teachers for their own learning, growth and development.
“Knowledge acquired under compulsion obtains no hold on the mind.” (Plato)
An important concept that must be kept in mind is that evaluation is an important part of the learning process. Students should be helped to assess the quality of their own work and make revisions accordingly. Parents and teachers can ask questions that result in student introspection and self–awareness.
5. Is there anything in the book that you do not understand or are unclear about, or are there ideas which you disagree with and if so, why?
There is nothing in the book that I did not understand or unclear about, and I disagree with no idea.
6. Did the book contain exercises for the reader to complete? If so, did you complete all the exercises and did you find them helpful?
The book contains no exercises for the reader to complete.
7. Was there anything you read in the book that you would like to comment on that was not covered in the previous questions? If so, please comment.
I have nothing else to comment about in the book.
Please rate the following questions on a scale of 1 to 10. Ten is good and one is poor.
A. How interesting was it to read? 10
B. How helpful were the contents? 10
C. How easy was it to read? 10
D. Would you recommend it to others? 10
E. What is the overall rating you would give it? 10
Grant Writing Handbook
Assessment by Ayoade Anthony (Nigeria)
1. What is the main idea that the author is trying to convey in the book?
The book is on how to solicit funds for non-profit initiatives by writing effective proposals to grant-makers.
2. What were the seven ideas which were personally most important to you and why? List these seven ideas followed by an explanation after each one as to why it was important to you. Use personal examples from your own life.
i. Learn to deal with Rejection
Grant – seeking process has many potential rejection points, and you should be prepared to deal with each. To be a successful fundraiser, one must learn to accept rejection as a matter of course – even expect it. Some funding sources estimate that 9 out of every 10 proposals are rejected.
Here are some reasons why fundraisers get rejected:
Failure to research the foundation and understand its mission and goals.
The proposed project is not clearly defined.
The project exists without the benefit of prior experiences or other perspectives.
The budget is unrealistic or perceived to be faulty in some way.
One must resist the temptation to let the relationship with the fundraiser drop despite the rejection of a proposal.
ii. An Effective Fundraiser has certain Characteristics.
Fundraising has developed into a field in recent years, opening up positions that require qualified people to fill them. One of the reasons for this is that the field is still fairly new, and educational and training opportunities are just beginning to catch up with demand. Success in the field requires a fundraiser who provides direction and do right things by guiding the process, orchestrating the player, and motivating the team to move forward.
He or she sets goals and establishes priorities. Some other basic personal characteristics are listed below:
Personable: A genuine love for all kinds of people, feeling comfortable to initiate interactions with strangers.
Passionate: A belief in the organization’s mission contributes greatly to the fundraiser’s success. It is important to pick a non-profit that speaks to both your heart and mind. Passion makes your work more fulfilling and infects those around you.
A good listener: Some people are naturally gifted this way, but others can learn the skill. A good listener uses silence in interacting with people, allowing the speaker to express himself. He / She truly listen when someone speaks. Be yourself and try to establish a free-flowing conversation that is comfortable and enjoyable. They do not interpret the message through their own view. Such attitude distorts what is heard, but stay open to other’s perspectives and avoid making judgments. They learn to ask open ended questions, using a person’s answers to previous responses to engage them further in discussion. A quality of a good listener is maintaining eye contact. This helps to connect with the individual and further establishes credibility.
Trustworthy: Where money will be exchanged, people want to know whether you are dependable before they commit to a more lasting relationship. Credibility is earned over time by the fundraiser.
Persistent: Development is not for the timid. It takes thick skin to be rejected and still continue to advocate for a cause. you need to feel challenged, not defeated by the obstacles in your efforts to solicit funds.
Creative: Good development officers think out of the box, and know how to chart a new course based on circumstances. They reassess strategies that fell short and device new methods of solving problems.
Motivated: In order to achieve the purpose of the organization, fundraisers are self- motivated. They supervise themselves, remaining motivated and on track despite a lack of external monitoring.
Confident: Confidence is needed by development officers to instill confidence in those around them. A confident person is not embarrassed by what he or she doesn’t know and they freely admit their imperfections. A confident person with high self – esteem is able to see a proposal rejection as part of doing business, not as a personal issue.
Curious: Good grant seekers understand the need to satisfy and magnify curiosity. They always aspire to answer the question, “How can I learn?” as they get connected to the world around them. It makes people to naturally get drawn to them.
iii. There are Different Types of Foundation and Corporate Grant Makers
Corporate and foundation philanthropy are established to impact communities and other parts of the world. They give money, time and expertise to causes they believed in. Understanding the reasons why foundations and corporations give money away makes me have ideas of things that can motivate me to have my own foundation in future.
It is noteworthy that foundations give money away for a variety of reasons:
The original donor had a cause that she was particularly interested in, like health or education.
The foundation may want to effect change in one particular region.
The foundation wants to have a national impact on a particular issue.
The foundation wants to gather information on a topic and disseminate it to either the public or public policy officials.
The foundation wants to help nonprofits increase their capacity to serve constituents by stabilizing its management and finances.
The foundation’s founder wants to provide ongoing support for specific organizations.
Corporations are also interested in supporting nonprofits for these reasons:
Social and civic responsibilities fulfillment
Strengthening the communities in which they operate
Good relationships with the surrounding community
Improved customer relations
Better employee morale
Better corporate image
Greater competitive advantage
iv. Define your Project, as well as your Organizations’ Mission and Goal
The above idea has opened my eyes to what I need to do as I prepare to ask for grant in future, it represents a summary of what I propose to accomplish. The summary should not be as detailed as a full proposal, yet it must give the reader a clear sense of the scope of the project. The summary has these key elements:
What population and/or location are you targeting? How many participants or sites are involved?
What are the goals and objectives? What are the main activities? Do these things align well with what you hope to accomplish? Relate activities to your goals and objectives.
What is the scope of the project? Is this a pilot project you hope to replicate elsewhere or are you more concerned with impacting one neighborhood?
What is the length of the project? When do you hope to start and end?
v. Make the Best Initial Approach.
The purpose of the first approach is to begin to develop a relationship with the funder and to try to obtain their interest in your organization and the project you are proposing. First impression lasts longer. A first approach saves time for both the grant-seeker and the funder. It gives a chance to test the project to see if the external world sees much value in it.
The letter of inquiry is the most common first approach. It helps determine the level of interest the funder has in the project, and receive an invitation to submit a full proposal if it is acceptable. In writing letters of inquiry in future for my non-profit, I have to review the proposed funder’s guidelines or contact the funder to make sure I include all the required components of a letter of inquiry, including attachments. However, the most common elements of letters of inquiry are as follows:
Opening paragraph
Statement of need/rationale (one to two paragraphs)
Organizational description/expertise (one to two paragraphs)
Description of the project (up to one page, including timeline and outcomes)
Budget request and information (one to two paragraphs)
Closing (one paragraph)
Attachments
vi. Organize and Write Convincing Proposals.
Writing the proposal is the main job of the fund-seeker and must ensure that it contains the following components:
Cover letter (one page)
Cover page (one page, optional)
Table of contents (optional)
Introduction (one page or less)
Organizational credentials (one to two pages)
Statement of need (one to two pages)
Project methods (three to five pages; includes goals/objectives, project description, timeline, and evaluation)
Budget (one to two pages)
Conclusion (one-half page)
Attachments
vii. Cultivate Effective Stewardship
An effective fundraiser does not underestimate the important of good stewardship in the grant-seeking process. Stewardship can mean the difference between just getting a grant and maintaining a long-term relationship with the funder. Stewardship encompasses everything that happens after the granting is given. It includes acknowledging the gift, thanking the donor, reporting on the gift and giving honest progress reports. I appreciate this idea as it emphasizes the power of gratitude all over again.
3. How will these ideas or lessons help you in a practical way, both in your daily personal life and in helping you to create a better world? If so, how?
I have a non-profit organization known as Basic Freedom Network in Nigeria whose vision is to use resources at our disposal to empower people around us. In fact, the reason I decided to read this book is to guide me in seeking organizations that can be of assistance in future. A step by step guidance from developing the project to getting the grant is provided in the book.
4. Quotes: Are there brief quotes from the book which really got your attention? If so, please list and comment on them.
“It is widely known in the business world that those who plan for the future and can anticipate change are often the best leaders.”
Influential trends must be noted and anticipated by grant seekers which include socio-economic and political changes. Wealth generates philanthropy. Decrease in assets results in a decrease in overall giving from foundations and vice versa. The grant seeker must be well-informed to understand these trends. As a fundraiser you must be well informed to provide your boss with regular updates on the fundraising field.
“Preparation is the key to success.”
Before writing a proposal, an understanding of the funder must be sought to ascertain whenever their interests are in line with your own organization’s mission. Fundraising is a job requiring many inherent personal traits and learned skills. It is possible to acquire and develop those skills to become a successful fundraiser. Building relationship with fundraiser is essential for a successful fundraising before sending proposal; it is expedient to first of all establish contact with the funding source. Understanding generational shift between the fundraiser and the funder is essential in developing strategies for cultivating in relationships. Philanthropy is about relationships and studying changes in people.
5. Is there anything in the book that you do not understand or are unclear about, or are there ideas which you disagree with and if so, why?
There is nothing in the book that I did not understand or unclear about, and I disagree with no idea.
6. Did the book contain exercises for the reader to complete? If so, did you complete all the exercises and did you find them helpful?
The book contains no exercises for the reader to complete.
7. Was there anything you read in the book that you would like to comment on that was not covered in the previous questions? If so, please comment.
I have nothing else to comment about in the book.
Please rate the following questions on a scale of 1 to 10. Ten is good and one is poor.
A. How interesting was it to read? 8
B. How helpful were the contents? 9
C. How easy was it to read? 8
D. Would you recommend it to others? 9
E. What is the overall rating you would give it? 8.5
The Secret
Assessment by Ayoade Anthony (Nigeria)
1. What is the main idea that the author is trying to convey in the book?
The idea behind the book is how to use the untapped hidden power inside us to bring joy to every aspect of our lives and achieve the seemingly impossible.
2. What were the seven ideas which were personally most important to you and why? List these seven ideas followed by an explanation after each one as to why it was important to you. Use personal examples from your own life.
i. By focusing on what we don’t want we ignorantly attract more of it
I can emit unfathomable magnetic power through my thoughts and become the most powerful magnet in the universe. Where I am at the moment is a reflection of my past thoughts. Thoughts become things! Like the TV signals, my thought in form of magnetic signal I send out gives the pictures I am having in my life that people see. If I don’t like the pictures I can change the frequency of transmission. Whenever I imagine a thing and focus on it with all my intention, I am transmitting frequency or magnetic signal that will draw the parallel back to me. People don’t live the life of their dreams because they think about what they don’t want than what they want, and what they think about they bring about.
ii. The universe does everything with zero effort.
Apart from the universe not being limited by time, it is also not limited by size, we can attract one million dollars as fast as we can attract one dollar. The only reason why one may come faster and the other may take longer is because we thought that a million dollars takes a lot of effort to make. However, this is just a rule we defined, not according to the universe. We don’t need to struggle to get things; we only need to be in the flow. The grass doesn’t strain to grow. It is effortless. Unfortunately we tend to struggle to get things that we want, which actually creates more struggles.
The idea that the Universe does everything with zero effort teaches me that it is futile to criticize, condemn or complaint about a bad situation – the best approach is to go within and emit a new signal with my thoughts and feelings which I interpret personally to mean prayer. I am energy that vibrates and has the power to attract anything to my life by causing it to vibrate at my frequency through focus, so it is not people giving me what I need but the Universe or God who has moved things on my behalf.
My spiritual knowledge tells me that God is Spirit and that the spirit of God lives in me, hence I am one with the Universal mind which I interpret as God. It means I can draw forth any idea from the Universal mind by using the power of creative visualization and imagination. The fact that I can look for a need waiting to be filled in my life and in the world, and then imagine and think its fulfillment into being means that I can overcome all challenges.
I have more peace inside me as I see my oneness with everything in the universe thereby seeing beyond the limitation of labeling other person as a competitor or enemy. It is helpful not to allow anything especially my stubborn ego to come between me and others, realizing that my power is from within and therefore under my control. The trick is to shift my focus to love my inner world whenever I want to look at myself with critical eyes so as to love others.
A great advice in this book which can make the Universe to release its abundance effortlessly to me is to “praise and bless” the things around me to dissolve negativity and discord and put me on the highest frequency of love that will return to me a hundred–fold. No wonder we are enjoined as Christians to love our enemies and bless them- we cannot be harmed if we don’t call harm into existence. I am more spiritually strengthened by the perfect correlation between the knowledge I gained from “The Secret” and my Christian knowledge.
iii. Expectation with intention leads to manifestation
Expectation is a powerful attractive force that draws things we desire to us. I need to learn to expect things I want, not things I don’t want. The idea that expectation with intention leads to manifestation is the reason why goals are accomplished. Focusing on one’s goals takes away scarcity mentality; it consequently removes thought of competition from the mind, and instead gives positive feelings. Writing my goals down and reviewing them make me look beyond the outside world and people as the supply, but seeing the Universe as the true supply. As I go through the goals, my thoughts and feelings become positive and I trust that the invisible field will move people and events to supply the substance. I’ve learnt earlier on in my IIGL studies that the invisible produces the visible. Recently the Universe moved a certain person to make me attract many acres of land in line with the goals I set for myself in my Level Three studies.
Expecting great things makes us create our lives in advance. Someone said, “When you say to yourself, I am going to have a pleasant visit or a pleasant journey,” you are literally sending elements and forces ahead of your body that will arrange things to make your visit or journey pleasant. From my experience as a Christian, I see the act of “thinking in advance” from the angle of offering prayer to ask anything I desire from God. I quite appreciate the advice that I should always think my day in advance of which the repercussion is to rush and hurry and allowing the day to take control of me. I have a To-Do-List of what I want to do the next day in order to have control over each day and overcome rushing or hurrying.
iv. The power of gratitude.
One of the powerful ways to turn our lives around is to start making a list of things from the biggest to the smallest to be grateful for. I have a gratitude register that I compile and go through whenever I want to shift from negative energies and start thinking positively.
I learnt to see things in my lives to be grateful for. As soon as I start to feel positive and grateful about what I already have, I start to attract more positive things. Positive feelings return to us more of what we want. This idea makes me understand why some things fail to manifest after praying for them. Ingratitude sends a dominant frequency of lack to the universe and lack begets lack.
I take control of the day by singing at least ten “gratitude choruses” immediately I wake up in the morning. As I do this, I am powerfully creating the day and all that it will contain.
v. The power of visualization.
I can see the reason why visualization is so powerful. It creates pictures in my mind of seeing what I want, thereby generating thoughts and feelings of having it now; and this emits a powerful frequency out into the Universe. The law of attraction takes hold of that powerful signal and return those pictures back in reality.
Creation of vision Board is one of the things I do to get what I want. I put pictures of all the things I want in a place where I see them every day. I learnt about this in my IIGL Level Three studies, and I love the feeling of joy derivable from seeing my Vision Board every day.
vi. The secret to wealth is to focus on abundance.
With imagination, I can act as if I already have the money I want. Lots of fun can be created out of it, and one will notice that one feels better about money, thereby creating a flow of it into one’s life. Writing a post-dated check in my name with an imagined amount had been my practice since year 2010. The feeling I transmit into the Universe when I visualize money coming to me is different from the feelings of visualizing bills coming to me. The shortcut to prosperity is to be happy and radiating the feelings of joy and happiness into the Universe.
All the money we need already exists in the invisible, but often times we talk about “needing” money and automatically the law of attraction continues to attract “needing” money. To attract abundance, I confess positive words continuously when I see any good thing: “I can afford that! “I can buy that!” This makes abundance my predominant thought, and the Universe moves people, situations and circumstances, to deliver what I need. Wealth is in the invisible and is never depleted; it is with us all the time and comes to the visible by thinking wealth.
By human nature, we do not feel good about not having money and unfortunately this creates more lack of money. I have learnt to act as if I have plenty by being generous with money and feeling good about sharing it; I focus on abundance by singing my favorite song- “I am a magnet to money.”
vii. Human mind is the biggest factor in the healing arts.
In the placebo effect, when patients think and truly believe a tablet is a cure in their mind, they will receive what they believe, and they will be cured. One negative thought that went unchecked can create sickness, but good health can be created with one small positive thought and then another. Disease cannot live in a body that’s in a healthy emotional state. I can deduce the reason why some people who are spiritually strong rarely fall sick – there is a direct relationship between spiritual strength and emotional strength.
Cathy Goodman demonstrated the above idea by confessing, “Thank you for my healing” and she watched funny movies and laughed to release all negativity, and got healed of cancer. I am inspired to sometimes look myself in the mirror and laugh heartily, no matter what is happening around me. I am wary of people who discuss illnesses, as I have learnt that the secret to good health is to mind what I focus. By virtue of my Christian faith, I can see the significance of prayer in making the mind get focused on abundant healing and hopefulness. I have been involved in many healing prayer sessions and I can now see that it works based on the above idea that the human mind is the biggest factor in the healing arts. Prayer speaks to our minds and affects what we focus.
3. How will these ideas or lessons help you in a practical way, both in your daily personal life and in helping you to create a better world? If so, how?
It had been revealed in the book that people in the world ignorantly talk and think about what they don’t want- fighting AIDS, poverty, terrorism and wars. By focusing on what we don’t want we ignorantly attract more of it. I believe change begins with me, and I can be an example of the paradigm shift in the world by thinking and speaking about what I want. As a light I have the power to dissolve darkness that comes my way with my right thoughts and words in the world. I may be one person among millions of people, but a little light is better than the thickest darkness.
I can pray and bring what I want into my thoughts or create the picture of what I want with feelings of joy and focus on everybody being in joy. I pray for peace in the world and strengthen what I have asked for with my thoughts, words, and actions, believing that the law of attraction will move people, events, and circumstances for good things to happen in the world.
Like the majority in the world, my environment had trained me to believe that I have to struggle to get good things. No one taught me how to be in the flow, so I had ignorantly joined others by becoming a struggler. In the midst of struggling, a fertile ground is prepared for fear, envy, frustration, contentions, aggression, greed and other symptoms of lack. I am now aware that the endless struggle in the world is due to scarcity mentality leading to fear and greed to have more without giving a damn about others. I must not be part of the crowd, so my intention is to adequately fund my non-profit organization, the Basic Freedom Network and empower people with our resources in the nearest future. The world will have less strugglers, smugglers, and stranglers if I liaise with others to realize that there is more than enough creative ideas, power, love, joy to share with one another.
It is gladdening that my spiritual development is being strengthened through the ideas I gained in this book. Greed and fear are the reasons for so many challenges in the world because the majority look at the material world as the source of everything. I have to make others realize that mind is the greatest asset that can give everything we need as long as our thinking is unlimited. Everything comes back to the attitude of love, gratitude and sense of appreciation for everything in the Universe, it is on this that peace and joy in the world rests. The world becomes heaven on earth if we all realize that what we need is actually inside us instead of looking for what is not lost out there which leads to so much competition, comparison, contention, criticism and complaints.
To make the world a better place, I must first of all appreciate the giant within me. If I don’t love myself or appreciate my inner power, it is difficult to love or appreciate others, and this is what creates challenges. Love is a powerful force that motivates everything we want. To attract the things I love I must transmit love, and those things will appear immediately. The challenge in the world is ignorance of these facts, but I am grateful for my new consciousness believing that one mind can make a difference. Fortunately, it is never too late for anyone to become aware and start making a difference in the world; it begins with me to bring as many people as possible into the light in my deeds.
Life is meant to be lived beyond linear thinking; one can imagine the positive effect that earlier exposure to these ideas will have on children. Teaching kids how to do what makes them feel good and resonates with their heart is what the world needs to overcome wayward children and adults in future. I love to use the social media to create awareness for everyone to realize the need to give room for total education that draws forth the physical, mental, emotional and spiritual potential of people, especially the young ones who make up the future. I always recommend IIGL education to many young adults that I have the opportunity to interact with.
4. Quotes: Are there brief quotes from the book which really got your attention? If so, please list and comment on them.
“It has been scientifically proved that an affirmative thought is one hundred times more powerful than a negative thought.” By: Michael Beckwith
As it happens, we get worried and frightened about all the negative thoughts that we have as we begin to understand the law of attraction. Our worries are however removed to a large extent once we have the knowledge that one positive affirmation is hundred times more powerful than a negative thought. The time-delay before thoughts become reality allows us to think empowering thoughts, to consciously choose what we want.
“It is the combination of thought and love which forms the irresistible force of the law of attraction.” By Charles Haanel
There is no greater power that can transform anything in the Universe than the power of love. The feeling of love towards everything and everyone is the highest frequency someone can emit. In fact the law of attraction is the law of love. Thinking thoughts of love puts us on the highest frequency possible. The greater the love we feel and emit, the greater the power we harness and the freedom we have. Thoughts impregnated with love become invincible and is transformational. Thinking unkind thoughts about someone else is harmful.
“What this power is I cannot say. All I know is that it exists.” By: Graham Bell
Our joy is not to figure out the how, what we need is commitment and belief in what we want. The how belong to the Universe that always knows the quickest, shortest, most harmonious way between us and our dreams. When our mind and our entire state of being see it as already happened, then it is done; that is the art of visualization.
“Abundance is not something we acquire, it is something we tune into.” By: Wayne Dyer
It is difficult to attract money when we notice we do not have enough, because it makes us generate thoughts of lack. We have to focus on the abundance of money to bring that to us; otherwise more circumstances of lack will be created.
5. Is there anything in the book that you do not understand or are unclear about, or are there ideas which you disagree with and if so, why?
There is nothing in the book that I did not understand or unclear about, and I disagree with no idea.
6. Did the book contain exercises for the reader to complete? If so, did you complete all the exercises and did you find them helpful?
The book contains no exercises for the reader to complete.
7. Was there anything you read in the book that you would like to comment on that was not covered in the previous questions? If so, please comment.
I have nothing else to comment about in the book.
Please rate the following questions on a scale of 1 to 10. Ten is good and one is poor.
A. How interesting was it to read? 9
B. How helpful were the contents? 10
C. How easy was it to read? 9
D. Would you recommend it to others? 10
E. What is the overall rating you would give it? 9.5
The Hidden Messages in Water
Assessment by Ayoade Anthony (Nigeria)
1. What is the main idea that the author is trying to convey in the book?
The main idea behind the book is that water has lots of things to teach humanity on natural laws and spiritual consciousness, to reclaim our health, to create peace, to make the world beautiful and bring happiness to the planet. The importance of water is shown in the fact that humans and the earth are composed mostly of water and it responds to how we treat it.
2. What were the seven ideas which were personally most important to you and why? List these seven ideas followed by an explanation after each one as to why it was important to you. Use personal examples from your own life.
i. Water has the ability to copy and memorize information.
Water existed before the earth was created. Water of the oceans, for example, has memories of the creature that live in the ocean. To understand water is to understand nature and life itself. My knowledge of the Book of Genesis is that in the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. The earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep, and the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. The Book of Psalm also stated, “The earth is the Lord’s, and all its fullness, the world and those who dwell therein, for He has founded it upon the seas, and established it upon the waters.” My understanding of the beginning of creation that everything began without form in water until God formed all visible things by separating the earth from the waters is further buttressed by the ideas I gained in this book.
The fact that water has the ability to copy and memorize information shows that I have the ability to mirror the world and become sensitive to the frequency being emitted by the world. With the understanding that I am 70 percent water, I can deduce the reason why I am prone to good and bad influences or imitations, but I can transform my soul to beauty by exposing it to right information. Good music and positive words produce beautiful crystals in water as experimented by Emoto, hence the above idea is encouraging me further to read good books and to listen to good music which had been helpful for me to overcome bad emotions and influences.
ii. Words and thoughts have the power to change water and other substances.
Everything that exists in the universe vibrates – each element has energy and generates its own unique frequency, the earth itself vibrates and rotates around its own axis. Words and thoughts are energies, so is water that is why words and music have the power to change water. Every substance is vibration. I can relate this explanation to my elementary chemistry knowledge that every element can be sub- divided into the smallest particle known as atom which has an electron vibrating and oscillating around its nucleus. At the invisible level, all that exists is particles and waves. Each element or substance has its own unique number of electrons determining its vibration or frequency, therefore no element is solid, but at the invisible level everything is only a nucleus surrounded by an endlessly rotating or vibrating unseen wave. People can see the frequency at which I vibrate just as I can feel the vibration of others when they are moody or joyful depending on the frequency they emit. This teaches me that I can give a good vibration by putting up a smiling face; it is noteworthy that apart from an individual, a country, a location or an institution can give a particular good or bad vibration, this awareness is useful in that through observation one can choose where to live, where to work, or whom to marry. At my age I have made these decisions using the rule of thumb, but I will be using the knowledge to teach others, including my children so as to choose based on natural principles.
As we grow older we lose a large amount of water in our bodies, so the earlier I start exposing my children to positive words the easier it is to enter their sub-conscious. From the photographs in the book, beautiful crystals were formed by exposing water to positive words like, “wisdom” “love and gratitude,” “thank you” while horrible pictures were seen when words like, “you fool” were shown to the water. Similarly, the words “let’s do it!” and “I’m sorry” created a lovely shape, while “do it!” created a bad image. This teaches me that force and commands are alien to the principles of nature and life; I am now more encouraged to avoid such words while relating with people. I have learnt that words that revile or harm are unnatural, hence less effective. My children and my subordinates do what I want easily when I say “let’s do it!” than using command words like, “do it!”
iii. Water has life and can give it to all living.
In the experiment performed by Emoto, the color of a particular crystal changed every ten seconds when it was observed, showing that water also breathes. When water is shown a written word in any language, it receives it as a vibration. It is noteworthy that electromagnetic waves have harmful effects on water; therefore, moderation is needed with television and computers in view of its harmful effect on water crystals. Water exposed to wholesome television shows creates beautiful crystals, indicating that the danger of electromagnetic waves changes with the content of the information. This idea is helpful in guiding me to choose what I watch with my eyes and what I hear.
Our journey started in the womb as 99 percent water, at birth we are 90 percent water, at adulthood we are down to 70 percent water, at old age we become 50 percent water. By implication from birth to death, we exist mostly as water. I can become more healthy and happy by purifying the 70 percent water that makes up my body. There is no gainsaying the fact that all creatures depends on water for survival, it is not surprising therefore that 70% of the earth is constituted of water. I agree with the belief that water is extra–terrestrial. Water is so common that it teaches me the power and elegance in simplicity. I cook, bath, and wash with it daily, not taking time to seriously think about its uniqueness until I read this book. Water is so unique that it easily dissolves all elements and washes them away to provide minerals for other living things to survive.
iv. Whatever appears soft and patient is really strong.
One of my favorite quotes in the book, “The Dynamics of Winning” when I wrote my report on it is that “Whatever appears soft and patient is really strong.” Water teaches me a lesson in life that I can be so simple outwardly but very strong inwardly-it is what I am inside that is more important.
Grand intention makes the sun to evaporate water on earth, turn it into steam that is condensed, falling to the earth as rain or snow. Something great makes the story of water and life remarkable beyond logic unlike other substances; water changes from liquid to solid without becoming dense, this makes it possible for ice to float on water, to ensure the survival of living organisms in the ocean when surface of water becomes covered in ice. As pressure and temperature changes, water gets transformed from solid state to liquid state and to gaseous state, and as the cycle continues throughout the ages, the element is preserved and conserved. It had been stated that humans exists mostly as water, an important lesson I can take away from this is that I have the ability to maintain my identity irrespective of the circumstances around me or situations facing me.
v. A substance that is neither exposed to positive or negative words is worse that the one exposed to negative words.
Based on experiment, it was discovered that the pictures of water that was not exposed to either positive or negative words are much more horrible compared with the water that was exposed to negative words. The discovery reveals that the act of giving any attention to something is a way of giving energy to it- the most damaging form of behavior is withholding attention. Recently in one of the organizations I belong, I made a personal decision not to contribute during meetings so as to avoid arguments that have been so common lately. Now, coming across the above idea reveals to me that failure to give attention to something is a way of destroying it, so I have to change my mind. In the light of this consciousness, it is imperative for me to give attention to all people; as a parent I can see in a new light the importance of speaking positive words to my children, and to have respect for all living and non -living things. The idea buttresses my belief which I use to share with people that no one is better than me and I am not better than anyone.
vi. The power of love and gratitude.
The feeling resulting from having been given something and receiving it joyously creates a passive energy or vibration that compliments love. If love is the man, gratitude is the woman, love and gratitude are both sides of the same coin, this awareness is important to me as it makes me realize that gratitude is the engine oil that lubricates the engine of love. When I express more gratitude to God and others, for example, I create more love towards them which makes me experience better emotional balance. As it happens, my relationship with them is positively affected. I want to appreciate IIGL for introducing the Go Gratitude Experiment in the March edition of the monthly news letter – I am being blessed through my membership of the group.
The beautiful picture of crystal formed by exposing water to the words “love and gratitude” that I saw in the book depicts the outstanding impact that these words can have on the world. Every created human being participate in the formation of society, therefore, any act of good or evil done by one person to another is like a drop in the ocean that creates its ripples, having its effect on the whole world. The deformity of one soul spreads throughout the world, resulting in global deformities but we can heal the deformities with “love and gratitude.” Every living thing functions better under the fundamental principle of love and gratitude. My Christian belief tells me that God is love and the source of disharmony between man and God is lack of gratitude. Experts believe that humans have the capacity to vibrate at 570 trillion times a second – an incredible magnitude indicating the wonderful potential in us, that is, each human being holds a universe within. I really appreciate the above idea because I am now aware that I can vibrate at very high frequency by manifesting love; and gratitude is the creator of a heart filled with love. I can radiate and attract anything in the universe by giving out love and gratitude; this idea reminds me of what I learnt in “The Secret” in my level four studies concerning the law of attraction, that I can attract anything to my life by operating at the same frequency with it. I also appreciate the above idea because it makes me understand the power of praying with gratitude to God as if what I want has already been received.
vii. Consciousness of what is inside us makes the world as beautiful as how we want it.
The human body is a universe within itself containing 108 elements that scientists had so far estimated. Availability of these elements, experts believe had given us such a high capacity for different emotions, some spiritualists believe that human being is born with counterpart 108 earthly desires (such as fear, greed, jealousy and vanity), which torture us throughout our lives. There is no one who is completely free from negative thoughts and emotions, a situation that makes the world not beautiful. One of the ideas I submitted in the book, “Projections of Consciousness” is that humans have past experiences, thoughts, emotions, and energies in their consciousness as they evolve over many generations.
Consciousness of my oneness with the universe is being awakened from the perspective of water, making this idea very important to me. My destiny is linked with others; my feelings have effects on the world moment by moment; the quality of words and thoughts I send out into the world determines the quality of the world I create. The world around me automatically changes if I stop criticizing and condemning others. I recently put to practice the above idea and I noticed an inner peace when I refused to respond angrily to my immediate boss who condemned a proactive step I took in good faith on behalf of the management in my work place. I further realize through this incident that I have the power to rule the universe inside me to control any external occurrence.
3. How will these ideas or lessons help you in a practical way, both in your daily personal life and in helping you to create a better world? If so, how?
At this moment in the history of mankind, the world is in a state of chaos; however, the above ideas from another perspective have given me knowledge of my consciousness. The realization that my body is 70 percent water gives a simple and effective answer to the overwhelming challenges and resultant state of unhappiness being experienced by me and everyone in the world today. The world becomes better by having more respect for water; such action promotes personal health and leads to global environmental renewal. The inherent power of water has really opened my eyes to see that water and everything in the world deserves respect more than I had previously believed.Everything is important, overlooking and neglecting people and things under the erroneous belief that they are not important is ignorance, each time I avoid this wrongful act, I will be contributing to the betterment of the world.
To make the world beautiful I need to find a way of freeing myself from the numerous earthly desires by emitting positive emotions, especially love and gratitude that is highly recommended in this book. By acting out in love and gratitude I can start enjoying the life of health and happiness. By changing the way I think, I can understand how to live in harmony with water, with nature, with the earth, without destroying them under any guise. The destruction of the planet today is as a result of greed and other negative emotions of the majority, so I have to leave the crowd by becoming contented with what I have. Experiments revealed that when one person becomes aware of something, other people also tend to become aware. By creating a world filled with love and gratitude in thoughts, words, and actions, I create a kind of field that resonates towards others to do same, this serves as my contribution towards a better world.
Now, I have the awareness that I can heal myself and others in the world. Sickness and disease thrive in the world as a result of the negative emotions of hate, anger, greed, anxiety inside us. Medicine is useful in the treatment of illness, but drugs have side effects; my lifestyle and psychological well-being determines my healing from source. Every part of the universe contains information about all other parts of the universe. Since I have a universe in me, I possess all the information of the universes (past, present, and future) in view of the 108 elements inside me. What happens in me has impact on all parts of the world because everything is vibration that spreads out beyond limits of space and time.
Reading this book has made me seen gratitude in a new light, I need to express more feelings of gratitude for the air I breathe, the water I drink, and many things I overlook. Attitude of gratitude breeds contentment and peace. By understanding gratitude, I can see that it becomes easier to practice love beyond love of my country, my religion, my family as it is being done in the world today, leading to religious and tribal warfare in Eastern Europe, Africa, and the Middle East. As I am writing this report, Russia, instead of showing gratitude for what she has achieved as a country invaded Crimea under the guise of their love for ethnic Russians there. For the love of my family, I worked too hard to make them comfortable thereby affecting my health, now I understand that what I need to preach and practice is love and gratitude, to become aware of what it means to have enough and also see that I have so much around me that deserves my gratitude.
Now, each time I have the opportunity to get near water, I focus my attention to it and send thoughts and words of love and gratitude to it to resonate with water everywhere. This way, the souls of everyone in the world can receive what links us together-love and gratitude.
4. Quotes: Are there brief quotes from the book which really got your attention? If so, please list and comment on them.
“Observation has an effect on the observed.”
The fact that consciousness has impact on objects is valuable for parents, spouses, bosses, and leaders in all areas of life. We can change people by giving attention to them. Each one of us has a magical ability to change the world using the power of divine creator inside us.
“Everything in the world is constantly changing and nothing ever changes.”
From the principle of conservation of energy, energy cannot be destroyed, it only gets converted from one form to the other; since everything vibrates, everything is energy, constantly changing in form and motion but nothing ever changes. There is no difference between the past, the present and the future, everything is in the present- it is what I make my present moment to be that my life becomes irrespective of the past.
5. Is there anything in the book that you do not understand or are unclear about, or are there ideas which you disagree with and if so, why?
There is nothing in the book that I did not understand or unclear about, and I disagree with no idea.
6. Did the book contain exercises for the reader to complete? If so, did you complete all the exercises and did you find them helpful?
The book contains no exercises for the reader to complete.
7. Was there anything you read in the book that you would like to comment on that was not covered in the previous questions? If so, please comment.
I have nothing else to comment about in the book.
Please rate the following questions on a scale of 1 to 10. Ten is good and one is poor.
A. How interesting was it to read? 10
B. How helpful were the contents? 10
C. How easy was it to read? 10
D. Would you recommend it to others? 10
E. What is the overall rating you would give it? 10
Buffet: The Making of an American Capitalist
Assessment by Ayoade Anthony (Nigeria)
The main idea behind the book is to tell the world that there is an investment strategy that anyone can follow to become successful as long as we are willing to pay the price and follow the steps of a leader like Warren Buffet.
2. What were the seven ideas which were personally most important to you and why? List these seven ideas followed by an explanation after each one as to why it was important to you. Use personal examples from your own life.
i. Principle of Definiteness of Purpose
Experience shaped Warren Buffet’s life: The depression of the 1930’s affected his family, he as a child less than 5 years old made his mind up to become very rich and never stopped thinking about it. He made use of every opportunity to earn money, selling golf balls, distributing newspaper such that he was able to buy forty acres of Nebraska land at the age of fourteen. Warren had this conviction about himself that he would be rich before he was thirty–five. At a young age he had declared that he doesn’t want money as much as the fun of making money and watching it grow. Here, I can see the importance of setting my goals which I have to appreciate more, in that I can always achieve what my mind conceives and believes.
ii. Power of Focus
The advent of new technologies brought electronic stocks into the market bringing annual returns for Buffet’s competitors, far higher than what he had been making. He confessed that the partnership he managed will not go into business where technology which is way over his head is crucial to the investment decision. I admire his ability to focus on what he knows how to do, despite external pressure he stood on what he believed in. He was not ready to compete with those who were buying fashionable stocks, he could offer no proof that prices were unrealistic, only conviction and instinct. I can see the need for me to have a sense of focus to make me less dependent on people’s opinion and sentiments concerning the stocks I invest in; Warren’s ability to stay focused is one of his strengths. He believes one doesn’t need a big “circle of competence” but is very important to know where the “perimeter” is. As applied to managing, he picked the chorus line but did not attempt to dance. Where other managers often created problems by interfering, Buffet’s sense of focus on his area of expertise averted them in his companies. He allowed the owner–managers of the businesses he bought to run their businesses nearly without strings once he had ascertained their competence when the companies were bought.
iii. Power of creative vision
Warren used his power of creative vision to pick winning stocks instead of owning so many stocks as the professionals do. In 1987, Buffet quietly sold every stock in his portfolio save for the “permanent” three, but refused to reinvest the money. He could see that the bullish market was unsustainable and he mistrusted forecasts- he had seen “a danger zone.” He was now putting his money into municipal bond such that when his prediction of bust in the market came, his loss was minimized. Buffet admitted he had retained from Graham, his mentor, “the proper temperamental set” – that is the principle of buying value, the conservation embedded in Graham’s safety principle, and the attitude of detachment from the daily market gyrations. He used the foundation to work out new concepts, thinking beyond the boundaries of his teacher to invest in companies that Graham would not have touched, and consequently became more successful. Through the power of creative vision I can use other people’s idea as a springboard to achieve greater things.
Buffet could see things before others, upon the liquidation of the investment partnership he decided to put his money in a textile company, after the deal he bought an insurance company. He concluded that textile manufacturing requires reinvestment in plant and equipment; a cash–consuming venture, whereas insurance was cash–generating and a conduit for investable cash. At a time people see insurance as a backwater industry, Warren could see the potential in it before others. I don’t need a better explanation to make me understand how to invest.
iv. Habit of Prudence
Warren believes that even trifling sums should be invested with the utmost care, that the loss of a little money represents the loss of the money and its potential. I believe this habit made him put more than 90% of his personal money in investment, instead of spending it, driving a single car for many years, living in one simple house for years, wearing simple dresses, and eating the same type of food over the years – his problem is how to spend money, not how to make it. I can see the importance of saving money in the above idea just like my mentor always say that whoever does not save is not safe, I am really awakened by this.
I can see that exemplary people have practical wisdom that comes from the knowledge and understanding of how to act rightly all the time. Warren possessed the habit of prudence not only in the way he spends money but when he gives financial advice. I observed that ordinary people run more than their legs can carry them, while exemplary people keep their gun powder dry. One of his business friends said, “He showed me sensible ways to finance. But he never–ever–made suggestions.” In a particular billion dollars business, this particular friend asked Warren to suggest a bargain for a business deal, he refused. I am able to learn further from Buffet the need to show discretion when discussing monetary issues.
He becomes impersonal and at arm’s length with his family members where money was involved. I can learn that he did not want them to abuse their position and also teach them the proverb: Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day, teach a man how to fish and you feed him for a lifetime. He believed giving his children too much money will do them more harm than good, it is also not fair to the public. My country will be better for it if we have people who can think deeply like Warren Buffett, despite the illegality of money acquired by the government cronies and officials they lavish it on their families not thinking a bit about the public.
v. Principle of service to humanity
Buffet’s exemplary lifestyle can be seen in his opposition to discrimination as it goes against his belief in merit and his faith in a level playing ground for everyone. In a country that was in the heat of racial discrimination in the sixties, Buffet and his wife joined groups who spoke against the policy, and probably the only white family in their neighborhood that regularly and routinely entertained blacks at home. His decision to quit the Republican Party on whose ticket his father and mentor was elected severally into the House of Representatives speaks volume about Warren’s character. He based his decision to join the Democrats on the failure of the Republicans to address civil rights issues.
On another occasion he joined the crusade to defend a medical doctor who was convicted for referring a woman to an abortionist. To him, society’s stake in having open institutions without segregation, and minimizing the number of unwanted babies outweighed the narrower excuses. The human side of Warren Buffet manifested when he refused to close up Berkshire Textile Factory despite the laughable profit of $45,000 it gave in 1970 compared with the over two million dollar profit from his investment in insurance and banking. He had feelings for the workforce and made up his mind that as long as the mill didn’t become a drain on cash and require him to put in more capital, its mediocre returns will be tolerated.
vi. Power of self-discipline
He told his child once, “It takes twenty years to build a reputation and five minutes to ruin it. If you think about that you’ll do things differently.” He often took the virtuous course than following the greedy way when taking decisions. Once, he was buying a particular stock over a period of weeks but had an inside information that the company had been taken over at a big premium; he immediately told his trading partner to stop buying despite the fact that he could make a lot of money, he did not allow self–interest to take a better part of him. Another incident signifying his strong sense of self-discipline happened when Buffet partnership clocked an unprecedented gain of $40million representing 59% return on investment in 1968, but he decided to liquidate the partnership in 1969. His words are remarkable: “I am not attuned to this market environment, and I don’t want to spoil a decent record by trying to play a game I don’t understand just so I can go out a hero.” I learned from Robert Kiyosaki in his book, “Poor Dad, Rich Dad” that all good investors should master emotions of fear and greed; I can conclude that it takes self-discipline to do this.
He manifested his mastery of emotion of fear when he bought American Express by putting one-third of his capital in the company whose shares is being dumped once he was convinced about its intrinsic value. With self-discipline he possessed the ability to control any situation, never allowing it to control him- the rare ability to control his emotions of greed and fear contributed to his success. Self-discipline as I can see is the habit of not allowing my emotions of greed and fear to override the facts I can gather. There were some good stocks that I hurriedly sold due to fear in the Nigerian capital market when it crashed in 2008 but had gone back to its true value today, and some I bought due to greed.
vii. Principle of Personal Initiative
Buffet ridiculed the “Efficient Market Theory” stipulating that the market is frequently efficient and the diversification theory which stipulates putting eggs in many baskets. These professional theories totally disregard the market’s irrationality and the influence of crowd psychology, so he confidently buy stocks at his own bargain price and wait for years. When Peter Lynch, the mutual fund wizard visited him in the 1980’s he felt a pang when Buffet told him that he owned mostly the same few stocks for years and years, whereas Lynch kicked out his losers every few weeks.
In 1980 Buffet refused to cut prices like other insurers did to hang on to business, so Berkshire lost a lot of money over a period of four years. In 1985, the insurance market turned, the insurers who had cut prices to hang on could no longer cope with losses. Big commercial customers had to switch over to his insurance company thereby making more money than he had lost. He had read the business correctly that the ability to provide insurance is an attitudinal concept, not a physical fact. Other insurance companies became the proverbial cat that sat on a hot stove, it never did so again – but it never sat on a cold stove either. The scenario created a lot of room for Berkshire to operate and make lots of money due to his personal initiative.
When Nigerian stock prices crashed I sold my stocks, but with the ideas I am getting in this book I am planning to go back, this time around making better use of my personal initiative.
3. How will these ideas or lessons help you in a practical way, both in your daily personal life and in helping you to create a better world? If so, how?
The world needs a sense of fidelity, a quality that had made a single individual like Warren Buffet held on to his admirers for many years. Like Warren, I can be a light in the world, by not looking at the outward appearance but “intrinsic value” of all things an ideal I need to develop in order to make quality choices. I can see that to make decision on what I don’t know requires investigation until I understand, otherwise I should leave it. The source of lots of cowardly acts and mediocrity in the world today is inability of people to look deep; forgetting that what is seen on the surface is usually not what is inside. Beauty, I can see more clearly is in the eye of the beholder. By doing things based on values and principles, I will belong to the few who do things not according to the dictates of the moment. Buffet had been able to prove to me that with right values of patience, discipline, integrity, innovation, purposefulness, I can become rich to fill the gap in the world.
Buffet’s life proved to me that there is greatness in simplicity; by adopting a simple way of life I can positively affect many lives. At forty, Warren Buffet was already a multimillionaire but he made light of his money living more or less on the $50,000 salary that he received from Berkshire. His children went to public schools, in fact they realized the extent of Warren’s fortune in the newspaper. I want to be in a position to demystify money in this way, to make my house open for people to visit and to use my resources to serve humanity than self.
4. Quotes: Are there brief quotes from the book which really got your attention? If so, please list and comment on them.
“The best thing I did was to choose the right heroes.”
Warren met some people he regarded as his heroes, the first man in his investment career that made a lot of impact on him was Benjamin Graham. He admired Graham’s approach of investing in the stock market that absolved him from having to imitate others. He easily identified the gifts of others.
“A bull market is a bit like falling in love. When you are in one, it has never happened to anyone before.”
We see all kinds of rationales to justify our actions when we fall in love – sentiments take the place of logic. This is similar to what happens during bull session in the market – no rationale had kept precious rallies from abrupt and unpleasant endings.
“The great man is he who in the midst of the crowd keeps with perfect sweetness the independence of solitude.”
Warren Buffet’s father appreciated the habit of independent thought, the above quote by Emerson is the favorite maxim he recites with his children. Knowing the power of habits and developing good habits are part of the family tradition that must have rubbed off on Warren. His father always told him:You are not required to carry the whole burden–nor are you permitted to put down your share.
“You are neither right nor wrong because the crowd disagreed with you.”
Right from his youth Warren stood out of the crowd in his attitude despite his quirks being pointed out; he had the courage never to conform to anyone’s way of life in dressing and other things. He lived according to the above saying.
5. Is there anything in the book that you do not understand or are unclear about, or are there ideas which you disagree with and if so, why?
There is nothing in the book that I did not understand or unclear about, and I disagree with no idea.
6. Did the book contain exercises for the reader to complete? If so, did you complete all the exercises and did you find them helpful?
The book contains no exercises for the reader to complete.
7. Was there anything you read in the book that you would like to comment on that was not covered in the previous questions? If so, please comment.
I have nothing else to comment about in the book.
Please rate the following questions on a scale of 1 to 10. Ten is good and one is poor.
A. How interesting was it to read? 9
B. How helpful were the contents? 10
C. How easy was it to read? 10
D. Would you recommend it to others? 9
E. What is the overall rating you would give it? 9.5
The Alchemist
Assessment by Ayoade Anthony (Nigeria)
The main idea behind the book is to teach humanity that the only obligation a person has for himself or herself is to follow their personal legend to realize their destiny, that the treasures we seek elsewhere is at our doorstep.
2. What were the seven ideas which were personally most important to you and why? List these seven ideas followed by an explanation after each one as to why it was important to you. Use personal examples from your own life.
i. Everything that happens to us is not by accident
As we work towards what we want, everything that happens to us including the people we meet in our lives is not by accident. Santiago, the shepherd boy in the story was robbed and he went through danger in the desert but all had been divinely arranged. The robbery forced him to meet the crystal merchant who gave him the chance to display his business acumen and the confidence to conquer the world. His journey through the desert made him to meet the English man who opened his eyes to see a new perspective of life. Instead of complaining about obstacle in achieving my goals, I can now see behind the situation the one hand that has written everything. There is synchronicity in all that happens; I can remove fear when challenges come by understanding that my life stories and the history of the world were written by the same hand. This agrees with my Christian belief that no matter what happens, everything ultimately works together for good. Events may come to test my will, but if I stay focused the purpose will be seen later.
ii. Lowest points in our lives can be our greatest teachers
The robbers who stole Santiago’s life-time savings when he got to Tangiers made him to work for the crystal merchant with whom he stayed long enough to learn Arabic, a language that became very useful for him in his journey to the Pyramid. Similarly he was beaten to the point of death by the tribesmen at the Pyramid but was indirectly given the valuable information he needed to go back to where his treasure was hidden. I learned here that all the events of my life are ladder-steps towards my true purpose in life; all my life challenges and experiences are precious learning opportunities in disguise to get to another dimension that gives great clarity and understanding of my life. I am now eager to see the benefits in every situation as I move towards my purpose on earth, and ask God to make me meet the people I am supposed to meet.
iii. If we can concentrate always on the present, we will be happy.
Focusing on the present, not living in either the past or the future makes us see that everything exists and play their roles as it were because they are part of the human race. Life can be a party for me or anything I want it to be depending on my choice. The challenge I have is my inability to stop thinking about too many things at the same time, but I perform better if I get focused. The above idea is effective in handling my negative emotions – I read books or concentrate on something positive immediately I notice wrong feelings inside me.
The future was already written by the same hand for the good of man. I like the idea of being mindful of the present and become a channel of love and oneness with the universe than entertain fear of tomorrow that gives negative thought patterns. By understanding the omens of the present, I can reasonably guess at the future- no human being can perfectly predict tomorrow except God who rarely reveals it. What one can know perfectly well is what happened in the past and what is happening now. Good things happen every day in my life that the sunrises, but I have to recognize them, otherwise I will think that all days are similar. What I have today is already the beginning of the future, the lesson here is that I have to do what I must do now because the future is here, today. I just need to live each day according to the lessons I am learning confident of the love of God to take care of the rest, to make my future what I want it to be. This knowledge makes me to understand better the story of King Hezekiah in the Bible who was told of his death, but when he prayed, God altered it. I can also understand the admonition that I should not be anxious of tomorrow, my duty is to make what I want known to God.
iv. Everything on earth including humans has one soul.
Everything on earth including humans has one soul, it is alive whether mineral, vegetable, or animal – or even just a simple thought or word, they vibrate and collaborate and are continuously transformed to aid success. The fact that the earth has one soul reveals that a positive force makes all things collaborate to bring success to people who want something with all their hearts. This knowledge is important to me as it creates the awareness that I don’t know everything about everything that God has created, so I have to respect everything – they are all collaborating in my success. It had been revealed to me in the book that all things are the manifestation of one thing only, so they speak the same universal language that I need to understand and appreciate so as to make my journey in life easier, instead of relying on my personal will or courage alone. What I do and the tool being used to do it speak the same language to give the expected end result. I appreciate this knowledge because it makes me understand the habit of respect and gratitude for everything, for example I am able to submit this report because the tools I am using to write this report, the paper, the pen, my hand, my mind and other things speak the same language. In other words, all deserve equal respect, and gratitude which I can deduce as the beginning of great spiritual experience.
v. Everything we learn in our journey will be tested by the soul of the world.
Our journey is such that will be tested to identify those who have the character so that only a few who are persistent and responsible can transform lead into gold in the end. Gold will lose its value if everyone can transform any metal into gold. Here, I learn that identifying and doing positive things others are not doing put me among the few who achieve their purpose on earth. The English man mentioned in the book had to travel a long distance through the desert in search of the Philosopher’s stone so as to realize his personal legend.
My purpose in life may be different from others but our ultimate goal is to make the world better, however it is not going to be on a platter of gold. Like the water under the ground which exists but is invisible, it is my responsibility to discover my purpose in life and pursue it while I learn on the way in patience. Santiago found out that the closer he got to the realization of his dream, the more difficult things became. In his pursuit of the dream, he was being constantly subjected to test of his persistence and courage; he noted that if he becomes hasty or impatient, he would fail to see the signs and omens left by God along his path to indicate what he should do. Also, everything I learn in my journey will be tested by the Soul of the World, using people and things to find out whether I will ‘die of thirst just when the palm trees have appeared on the horizon.’
Social, economic, and political problems in my environment sometimes hinder the contemplation of my dream; these distractions and tests make me see threats. People have really disappointed me severally but I am now learning that the way out is for me to make my heart listen to its Source, and master the lessons the Soul of the World teaches me.
vi. Everything has messages to give.
By looking at what occurs around me, I can find a means of penetrating to the soul of the world – a part of everything that exists – visible and invisible things. It reminds me of what I have learnt earlier on in my studies concerning the power of intuition, that my inner senses must be opened to receive messages from things around me. Any given thing on the face of the earth can reveal the history of all things; by observing something, I can use it to understand my experience of the moment.
Everything has messages to give as the desert gave messages to Santiago to assist him in his journey, but we have to interpret the messages, on an occasion his horse helped him to interpret the message because everything God created understands the language of life. I am humbled by this idea because I had ignorantly believed in the existence of human language only; but power of nature resides in all natural things if I contemplate them and listen to my heart to see the marvels of creation in humans, river, sun, wind, or field of flowers. I can “converse” with people, for example, in the universal language of love expressed in form of smile or courage, a language understood by all which I sometimes failed to express. It is being reiterated to me all over again that my heart knows all things, because it came from the Soul of the World that knows everything. My belief is more strengthened in the fact that it’s the simple things in life that are the most extraordinary, only wise men are able to understand them.
As a Christian, the commencement and stoppage of my fasting is usually preceded by a sign in my dream, but it took me some time before I understood the sign and the message. I can further realize that there are signs or omens around that are meant to guide me but I need to be observant to notice and interpret them.
vii. Everything in the universe evolved
Gold, a precious metal evolves far more than others, but people fail to see gold as a symbol of evolution; out of ignorance of the words of the wise they turned gold to basis for conflict. The reason is that people are not ready to go through the process that gold itself takes to evolve. When something evolves, everything around that thing evolves as well, so anyone who wants something good must be ready to evolve far more than others. I can liken gold to material possessions- instead of being driven by materialism; I only need to develop to become something that attracts abundance. At the end of the day I may attract less than what I expect, but it has its purpose to fulfill. I have to avoid situation whereby I want a particular thing by all means, this is the basis for conflicts and lack of peace in the world today.
3. How will these ideas or lessons help you in a practical way, both in your daily personal life and in helping you to create a better world? If so, how?
I am being further enlightened through these ideas to think deep to listen to messages being relayed by things around me, a process that brings calmness and confidence to deal with every situation. As I tried to cup my hand over my ear, and closed my ears to the sounds in the world all I can hear is something similar to the sound of the sea- the “material source” of all things as I’ve learnt. By merging my soul with the invisible sea according to Michelle Blood in her book, “Sea of Unlimited Consciousness” which I read in Level Four, I gain peace. I have realized that whatever comes my way is what I attract because all answers lie in my soul; if I can’t find peace and happiness there, it’s not going to come from the outside. Once I have peace, I can share it with the world and make it better.
Through the knowledge in this book, I am learning to make my relationships in the spiritual or material worlds to get better and everything around me becomes better, too. I further understand the essence of relationships in the statement – “the soul of the caravan speaks to the soul of the desert.” I interpret this to mean the power of intuition; by becoming more intuitive, I can improve my interactive ability with others in the world. The reason why I live below my potential is that I make the mistake of interacting with the world using human language alone without taking into consideration other things and creatures that understand the universal language. By feeling the voice of my inner guidance always, I let go of my need to control things and let God lead me, this way I act more maturely, my inner world gets better and I create room for miracles in my life and the outer world gets better for it.
Having the realization of the existence of God in everything is personally humbling, as it addresses my ego-problem and makes me see the importance of love and selflessness as the only answer to human existence. The world becomes better if I can live beyond my own little world to cultivate a win-win attitude. What I look for in myself is in others, the beauty I see in myself is in others, so I must not be carried away by my own needs but see my needs as the needs of others as I pursue my dreams. What others reflect is actually my reflection and what I reflect is their reflection. If I see the good in others, they will reflect it back to me whereby a ripple effect of goodness in the world will be created.
4. Quotes: Are there brief quotes from the book which really got your attention? If so, please list and comment on them.
“We make a lot of detours, but we are always heading for the same destination.”
Our journey in life is similar to the journey we take from one destination to the other. Where we are going is not far but we make several detours to avoid the danger ahead. Once we are on the journey of life, there is no going back than to find out the best way of moving forward, leaving everything to God who had written all with one hand.
“People should not seek the treasure of their Personal Legend without striving to live out the Personal Legend.”
Our personal legend is similar to our personal goals; in our attempt to achieve them challenges will come to make us more aware of our lives, we have to take them in our strides knowing that they have come to make us appreciate the goal when it is achieved. God created the desert so that man could appreciate the date trees, and created the world so that, through its visible objects, men could understand His spiritual teachings and the marvels of His wisdom.
“Only those who can see signs of life or omen are able to find treasure.”
Messages can also be referred to as signs of life or omen; everyone has his or her unique omens. It is good to note that there is reward for those who can see the omen and interpret it. Santiago was rewarded for successfully interpreting the omen he saw concerning the invasion of the oasis. Omen is the individual language God uses to talk to our hearts directly to guide us towards our destinies- the silent voice of God that leads us to the places where we should be. We make mistakes when we don’t understand it.
5. Is there anything in the book that you do not understand or are unclear about, or are there ideas which you disagree with and if so, why?
There is nothing in the book that I did not understand or unclear about, and I disagree with no idea.
6. Did the book contain exercises for the reader to complete? If so, did you complete all the exercises and did you find them helpful?
The book contains no exercises for the reader to complete.
7. Was there anything you read in the book that you would like to comment on that was not covered in the previous questions? If so, please comment.
I have nothing else to comment about the book.
Please rate the following questions on a scale of 1 to 10. Ten is good and one is poor.
A. How interesting was it to read? 9
B. How helpful were the contents? 10
C. How easy was it to read? 9
D. Would you recommend it to others? 9
E. What is the overall rating you would give it? 9.5
Zero Limits
Assessment by Ayoade Anthony (Nigeria)
1. What is the main idea that the author is trying to convey in the book?
In the book, Zero Limits, a unique method is introduced known as Ho’oponopono – which in Hawaiian means “to make right or cleanse.” It consists of “four- phrase” prayer: “I love you”, “I am sorry,” “Please forgive me,” and “Thank you.” The book helps in understanding how to use the prayer to clean the subconscious mind, where hidden programs hindering attainment of goals reside.
2. What were the seven ideas which were personally most important to you and why? List these seven ideas followed by an explanation after each one as to why it was important to you. Use personal examples from your own life.
i. Our problems are not out there but are memories replaying in our subconscious.
The secret behind successful living is to clean the mind of ancestral memories predating our birth and memories acquired while growing up, to open the way for the inflow of all divine blessings of health, wealth and peace. Everything we seek and everything we experience is inside us, if we want to change anything, we have to do it inside, not outside. I am responsible for what happens in the world based on memories I replay in my subconscious but I can appeal to the Divine to make me and others in the world return to the place of inspiration. I can do this cleaning by silently saying within myself to the Divine the Ho’oponopono prayer repeatedly thus: “I love you,” “I am sorry,” “Please forgive me,” and “Thank you.” I can see how the bad old memories being replayed in my mind had been the source of my poor performance in my finance and relationships but I’ve started taking back the control of my life by clearing those memories. I used to get angry with people who act wrongly but I am now seeing things in a new light – my challenges is not with the people, it’s the past memory of such situation that comes up I am unconsciously reacting to. Everything depends on my ability to love and forgive myself and others.
ii. We are 100 percent responsible for all we experience.
To say I am responsible for my actions is acceptable but to say I am responsible for what others do is strange and hard to take but this is where the essence of Ho’oponopono message lies. The fact that something is not my fault does not mean it is not my responsibility, here, my understanding of the habit of responsibility is enlarged.
I have the power to act on what I think, so I am absolutely responsible for what happens or what others make me experience. “You offended me” is a kind of sentence that I don’t want to say again – such a statement makes me put others at the driving seat of my life whereas I am the source and controller of what I experience. It takes deep spiritual understanding for me to understand that I caused every experience I encounter, and the way out is for me to pray for forgiveness for whatever is in me that caused the outer circumstance. Praying this way rests on trusting the Divine to heal my heart first – since everything without exception is inside me, then the outer situation will change.
After trying to effect a positive change in people without success I used to give up saying, “that’s their life,” however, the above idea reveals that my life experience is interwoven with others. There is divine connection between me and others that make their good or bad experience my own – all of us have one Source. I have to take full responsibility for wrong things others say, do, and think that shows up in my life; such becomes mine to heal without blaming anyone. I have to keep working on me not others – the wrong behavior I noticed in others that I don’t like is also in me as well, that is why I noticed it in them in the first instance.
As a counselor, the idea is enlightening that when a person comes to me with his challenges I have to work on myself first because what goes on inside of me has effects on the person. I don’t have to work on people but on myself. Again, as a Christian, to offer an effective prayer of healing for others, it is mind–opening that I have to direct the prayer of healing to myself first before others can get healed because I am the source of all the experiences of others. To be spiritually discerned is to see myself as a sinner like others, removing the log in my eyes so that I can see clearly to remove the log in other people’s eye.
iii. By acting from inspiration we let go of memories and ego.
The mind has a tiny, inaccurate and incomplete view of the world, preferring to exhibit concerns or worry over so many things instead of linking Divine intelligence where all inspiration and everything comes from. To overcome the worry I have to clean my mind by loving it, forgiving it and even giving thanks for it; in other words, I let go and let God instead of struggling. I have learnt that what I fight against keeps fighting back but by submitting my mind for the Divinity to operate, my mind plays from inspiration and gets transformed. Criticism, complaints, comparison, condemnation, contention are manifestations of actions from memories in my head but if I act from inspiration I‘ll hear the message sent from above to my mind, and pray for people instead of getting engaged in these wrong attitudes. I don’t have a clue what is going on more than God, so the key for me is surrendering, obviously if I don’t know everything that is happening it begs wisdom for me to allow my ego to make decisions for me. I can use my conscious mind to choose what I want to be, to do or to have, but I have to let go of the outcome by surrendering to the Divine who knows everything.
iv. Everything needs acknowledgement
One thread that runs through all the spiritual books I’ve read is the power of appreciation. I am now aware that things get wearied if not loved and acknowledged and a body gets sick if it’s not appreciated. Thoughts and words are energies I now use through expression of love and gratitude to appreciate and acknowledge the house I live, the car I ride, and the people in my life. At the invisible level, all non-living and living things have feelings because they vibrate at particular frequencies or energies – it is mind expanding for me to have the awareness of acknowledging the feelings of all things, this enhances my habit of respect.
There are challenges in homes, nations and the world because we fail to acknowledge them by simply saying, “I love you” and “thank you.” I am awake with the awareness that my challenges are sometimes results of inability to express love and gratitude towards all the things that made manifest blessings in all areas of my life. For example, physical cleanliness of my body, appreciating my personal properties and environment are forms of acknowledgement that can further create abundance. I am being encouraged by this idea to continue living in a constant state of appreciation for all the blessings I receive in the Universe.
v. Divinity is always right to give me what I need.
Divinity does what is right, so my duty is to keep my eyes focused on God – to stay focused on going back to zero where there are no problems or memories replaying. What I am given is always what I needed -if I can let go of my ego to understand. The memories replaying and the dancing ego aren’t just mine, they are shared, but they can be taken from my scene by sending love to the Divinity who hears and responds at the right time to give what I need. State of zero is state of no struggle; it is my home – a state of surrendering to Divinity where all things are possible. I can petition Divinity to convert error memories in the subconscious to zero or nothing using the Self I-Dentity through Ho’oponopono prayer of repentance, forgiveness, and transmutation. The state of nothing or zero was emphasized by the great king Solomon who stated that we brought nothing to the world and we shall ultimately take nothing out of it. Whenever I feel like complaining, it is good for me to always remember thatGod can never be wrong in what He gives.
The Universe began when nothing saw itself in the mirror. God who represents the Divinity does whatever and whenever in His own way and time – I only need to stay at zero, my natural home where I came from. To me, the divine message of Apostle Paul to the Philippians makes this clear: Be anxious for nothing but make your request known to God with prayer and supplication and you will have peace that passes all understanding- Phil.4:6-7.
Anything that needs change in my experience is up to me to clean using the Ho’oponopono mantra and come to the state of zero that makes me keep my peace while waiting for my miracle from Divinity.
vi. The purpose of life is to be restored back to the pure state of love, moment to moment.
My challenges in relationships with people are caused by erroneous thoughts within me. I can overcome these by seeing things anew with eyes of Love- connecting my mind with its Source, Love or God, and appealing to Love to clear the erroneous thoughts within me and replace with healing light of Love for me and others involved. By clearing my bad memories with the “four- phrase” mantra, what comes through is inspiration. My purpose is to clean memories- terrorism, economy, sicknesses and all sorts incessantly so Divine can inspire me to do what I came to the world to do. I can appeal to Divinity who knows my personal blue print, for healing of all thoughts and memories that are holding me back.
As I clear what is within me, I experience peace within. I no longer personalize what people do or say wrongly to me but realize that I created it so I am responsible for their actions and the experience is an opportunity for me to heal myself so that I can heal them as well. I repeat the Ho’oponopono mantra: “I love you”, “I am sorry”, “Please forgive me”, “Thank you”, saying it to the Divine while holding a sense of the situation in my heart to clear the shared negative energy from me and the other party to ensure none of us has to experience the wrong energy again.
The law of love is regarded as the greatest spiritual law by my spiritual master, Jesus Christ. I see the purpose of the Ho’oponopono prayer as something to make me remember my identity – that my true nature is love. I am a small universe and everything outside me is a projection of what I feel inside, so, if I feel love and gratitude, I will attract love and more things to be grateful for. Everyone wants to be loved (including me). By repeating the mantra, “I love you” inside my world, I cleanse myself and radiate an energy that others feel. As I make calls, write e-mails, discuss with people, I send vibration or energy of love to people and things by saying, “I love you” in my mind – the idea is to love everything God created unconditionally so as to experience the Divine.
vii. I can heal whatever comes my way, but to heal others, I have to heal myself first.
I am a healer, but if I take on people’s weaknesses instead of cleaning them away, I become helpless to heal. The healing process begins with the realization that the problem is not the sick or the healer but error memories replaying in the subconscious being shared by both. I found out that the reason why my words do not change a person is my erroneous thought that I am the one who will do the work, but in reality my own work is to first heal myself of the sickness I see in others. What I see in people is what is in me, and by healingmyself, we’ll both get well.
Someone said, “If you can spot it, you’ve got it”. Now I know that whatever comes up in my life or other people’s lives that I don’t like is for me to heal; if I see error and it bothers me, then it’s up for healing. I may have no idea why such a person or situation should be in my life however my responsibility is to heal what comes up. The healing process entails focusing on the Ho’oponopono mantra, and directing the “four line” prayer towards the thing or someone thus:
“I love you” (the divine in the person who is the subject of this prayer)
“I am sorry” (for whatever it is within me that has created this suffering. I take full responsibility for it)
“Please forgive me” (and release whatever caused this suffering)
“Thank you” (for this opportunity to clear, to release this suffering)
With the prayer, I restore my mind to its divine–like state, before I acquired memories while growing up that robbed me of my power to heal.
3. How will these ideas or lessons help you in a practical way, both in your daily personal life and in helping you to create a better world? If so, how?
I feel good that I have the power to heal the world and make a difference if I can love everything and everyone using the Ho’oponopono mantra to fill my heart with love, understanding, and compassion. When people and places can’t feel love, things go wrong but I can create everlasting healing and change by requesting the Divine through prayer to heal people’s hearts.
Through inspiration I can receive directive from the Divine, by surrendering and listening, and then acting on it I can create miracles in the world. I now see life beyond setting goals and having personal intentions that put me in control; things achieved seldom bring peace without letting go of my ego and its desire and allowing the Divine have its way through me and guide to positively impact the world.
The world works when I play my part, ensuring that I speak, think and act from inspiration and not memory so as to take full control of circumstances around me. A life independent of external conditions is not defensive and vulnerable; I have to move away from complaints, criticisms and condemnations of people and situations that hinder inspiration.
The lessons I gained made it clear that the solution is not “out there” but inside me in respect of challenges in my relationships, finances, or health; I only need to take away self or ego and merge with Divinity at Zero. As long as I keep saying “I love you” to the Divine and I keep cleaning, I return to the place of zero limit and flow with the universe, leaving my mind open to receive what it needs to heal the world. Getting connected to the Divine makes me neutralize collective fear energy, to make me and others leave the company of people prone to traps, worries and doubts in the world.
By taking 100 percent responsibility for myself and others, and allowing the removal of judgmental thoughts and words within me, I can heal myself and anything in the world. The problem isn’t with the evil doers, the politician, or the bad economy – anything I experience and don’t like is up for me to heal. To heal others, I have to heal myself first- problems don’t exist except as thoughts inside me, everything that happens in the world is in my life – the entire world is my creation. To improve the world, I have to heal my life because I am the world; everything outside is a projection of what is in me.
To heal myself and the world I have to realize that there is nothing wrong in the outside world, it is me who decided to hold all errors of the world in my soul, that is why Irecite the Ho’oponopono mantra to my soul who needs to hear it to begin healing process. By cleaning my toxic thoughts and replacing them with love and forgiveness everything in the world becomes good.
I’ve been led to a deeper awareness and enlightenment of the existence of peace that passes all understanding attainable in Love – my words, deeds and presence ought to bring people into harmony with peace. My responsibility in life is to bring peace to the planet, to say “I love you” to anything that comes my way, whether I saw it in my memory as good or bad. Debbie Ford said, “You must go into the dark in order to bring forth your light.” The world may be in darkness but it is my duty to create light. People just want to be loved, and my true nature is to love and make others know what to do to become a light in the world. Personally, I’ve realized that I am on the journey of transforming my life and others into an incredible experience by practicing and sharing the simplicity of the message of Ho’opnopono, and I believe a world without prisons can be witnessed when the message goes round.
4. Quotes: Are there brief quotes from the book which really got your attention? If so, please list and comment on them.
“We can imagine a world where there is no victor or vanquished, where there is no victim, oppressor or oppressed.”
We are not victims of any situation, one can realize this by no longer seeing anyone as the oppressor or aggressor but see oneself as the source of all negativity that arise. Despite the absence of good leaders in all institutions around us, we need not point accusing fingers at anyone but forgiving the energy surrounding all problems using the Ho’oponopono prayer.
“Life cannot be encountered and understood objectively, unless we are in a state of complete freedom and serenity of the mind.”
Life is newness: old minds with memory baggage cannot be used to encounter life successfully. The Ho’oponopono prayer is a powerful way to silence the mind to live in the moment, to clear the mind of the old stuffs – the barrier of the ego is broken by confessing love and gratitude in the prayer.
“Peace in the world begins with me.”
Absence of peace in one soul can be catastrophic as we can see in Adolf Hitler who facilitated a world war that killed millions of people due to his state of mind. The truth is that my state of mind or emotional health reaches others through me as we are all one, and it all happens inside. Consciousness of my oneness with the universe helps in knowing that if I have peace in my mind, its vibration has effect on the whole world.
5. Is there anything in the book that you do not understand or are unclear about, or are there ideas which you disagree with and if so, why?
There is nothing in the book that I did not understand or unclear about, and I disagree with no idea.
6. Did the book contain exercises for the reader to complete? If so, did you complete all the exercises and did you find them helpful?
The book contains no exercises for the reader to complete.
7. Was there anything you read in the book that you would like to comment on that was not covered in the previous questions? If so, please comment.
I have nothing else to comment about in the book.
Please rate the following questions on a scale of 1 to 10. Ten is good and one is poor.
A. How interesting was it to read? 9
B. How helpful were the contents? 10
C. How easy was it to read? 9
D. Would you recommend it to others? 10
E. What is the overall rating you would give it? 9.5
Zero Limits
Assessment by Ayoade Anthony (Nigeria)
1. What is the main idea that the author is trying to convey in the book?
In the book, Zero Limits, a unique method is introduced known as Ho’oponopono – which in Hawaiian means “to make right or cleanse.” It consists of “four- phrase” prayer: “I love you”, “I am sorry,” “Please forgive me,” and “Thank you.” The book helps in understanding how to use the prayer to clean the subconscious mind, where hidden programs hindering attainment of goals reside.
2. What were the seven ideas which were personally most important to you and why? List these seven ideas followed by an explanation after each one as to why it was important to you. Use personal examples from your own life.
i. Our problems are not out there but are memories replaying in our subconscious.
The secret behind successful living is to clean the mind of ancestral memories predating our birth and memories acquired while growing up, to open the way for the inflow of all divine blessings of health, wealth and peace. Everything we seek and everything we experience is inside us, if we want to change anything, we have to do it inside, not outside. I am responsible for what happens in the world based on memories I replay in my subconscious but I can appeal to the Divine to make me and others in the world return to the place of inspiration. I can do this cleaning by silently saying within myself to the Divine the Ho’oponopono prayer repeatedly thus: “I love you,” “I am sorry,” “Please forgive me,” and “Thank you.” I can see how the bad old memories being replayed in my mind had been the source of my poor performance in my finance and relationships but I’ve started taking back the control of my life by clearing those memories. I used to get angry with people who act wrongly but I am now seeing things in a new light – my challenges is not with the people, it’s the past memory of such situation that comes up I am unconsciously reacting to. Everything depends on my ability to love and forgive myself and others.
ii. We are 100 percent responsible for all we experience.
To say I am responsible for my actions is acceptable but to say I am responsible for what others do is strange and hard to take but this is where the essence of Ho’oponopono message lies. The fact that something is not my fault does not mean it is not my responsibility, here, my understanding of the habit of responsibility is enlarged.
I have the power to act on what I think, so I am absolutely responsible for what happens or what others make me experience. “You offended me” is a kind of sentence that I don’t want to say again – such a statement makes me put others at the driving seat of my life whereas I am the source and controller of what I experience. It takes deep spiritual understanding for me to understand that I caused every experience I encounter, and the way out is for me to pray for forgiveness for whatever is in me that caused the outer circumstance. Praying this way rests on trusting the Divine to heal my heart first – since everything without exception is inside me, then the outer situation will change.
After trying to effect a positive change in people without success I used to give up saying, “that’s their life,” however, the above idea reveals that my life experience is interwoven with others. There is divine connection between me and others that make their good or bad experience my own – all of us have one Source. I have to take full responsibility for wrong things others say, do, and think that shows up in my life; such becomes mine to heal without blaming anyone. I have to keep working on me not others – the wrong behavior I noticed in others that I don’t like is also in me as well, that is why I noticed it in them in the first instance.
As a counselor, the idea is enlightening that when a person comes to me with his challenges I have to work on myself first because what goes on inside of me has effects on the person. I don’t have to work on people but on myself. Again, as a Christian, to offer an effective prayer of healing for others, it is mind–opening that I have to direct the prayer of healing to myself first before others can get healed because I am the source of all the experiences of others. To be spiritually discerned is to see myself as a sinner like others, removing the log in my eyes so that I can see clearly to remove the log in other people’s eye.
iii. By acting from inspiration we let go of memories and ego.
The mind has a tiny, inaccurate and incomplete view of the world, preferring to exhibit concerns or worry over so many things instead of linking Divine intelligence where all inspiration and everything comes from. To overcome the worry I have to clean my mind by loving it, forgiving it and even giving thanks for it; in other words, I let go and let God instead of struggling. I have learnt that what I fight against keeps fighting back but by submitting my mind for the Divinity to operate, my mind plays from inspiration and gets transformed. Criticism, complaints, comparison, condemnation, contention are manifestations of actions from memories in my head but if I act from inspiration I‘ll hear the message sent from above to my mind, and pray for people instead of getting engaged in these wrong attitudes. I don’t have a clue what is going on more than God, so the key for me is surrendering, obviously if I don’t know everything that is happening it begs wisdom for me to allow my ego to make decisions for me. I can use my conscious mind to choose what I want to be, to do or to have, but I have to let go of the outcome by surrendering to the Divine who knows everything.
iv. Everything needs acknowledgement
One thread that runs through all the spiritual books I’ve read is the power of appreciation. I am now aware that things get wearied if not loved and acknowledged and a body gets sick if it’s not appreciated. Thoughts and words are energies I now use through expression of love and gratitude to appreciate and acknowledge the house I live, the car I ride, and the people in my life. At the invisible level, all non-living and living things have feelings because they vibrate at particular frequencies or energies – it is mind expanding for me to have the awareness of acknowledging the feelings of all things, this enhances my habit of respect.
There are challenges in homes, nations and the world because we fail to acknowledge them by simply saying, “I love you” and “thank you.” I am awake with the awareness that my challenges are sometimes results of inability to express love and gratitude towards all the things that made manifest blessings in all areas of my life. For example, physical cleanliness of my body, appreciating my personal properties and environment are forms of acknowledgement that can further create abundance. I am being encouraged by this idea to continue living in a constant state of appreciation for all the blessings I receive in the Universe.
v. Divinity is always right to give me what I need.
Divinity does what is right, so my duty is to keep my eyes focused on God – to stay focused on going back to zero where there are no problems or memories replaying. What I am given is always what I needed -if I can let go of my ego to understand. The memories replaying and the dancing ego aren’t just mine, they are shared, but they can be taken from my scene by sending love to the Divinity who hears and responds at the right time to give what I need. State of zero is state of no struggle; it is my home – a state of surrendering to Divinity where all things are possible. I can petition Divinity to convert error memories in the subconscious to zero or nothing using the Self I-Dentity through Ho’oponopono prayer of repentance, forgiveness, and transmutation. The state of nothing or zero was emphasized by the great king Solomon who stated that we brought nothing to the world and we shall ultimately take nothing out of it. Whenever I feel like complaining, it is good for me to always remember thatGod can never be wrong in what He gives.
The Universe began when nothing saw itself in the mirror. God who represents the Divinity does whatever and whenever in His own way and time – I only need to stay at zero, my natural home where I came from. To me, the divine message of Apostle Paul to the Philippians makes this clear: Be anxious for nothing but make your request known to God with prayer and supplication and you will have peace that passes all understanding- Phil.4:6-7.
Anything that needs change in my experience is up to me to clean using the Ho’oponopono mantra and come to the state of zero that makes me keep my peace while waiting for my miracle from Divinity.
vi. The purpose of life is to be restored back to the pure state of love, moment to moment.
My challenges in relationships with people are caused by erroneous thoughts within me. I can overcome these by seeing things anew with eyes of Love- connecting my mind with its Source, Love or God, and appealing to Love to clear the erroneous thoughts within me and replace with healing light of Love for me and others involved. By clearing my bad memories with the “four- phrase” mantra, what comes through is inspiration. My purpose is to clean memories- terrorism, economy, sicknesses and all sorts incessantly so Divine can inspire me to do what I came to the world to do. I can appeal to Divinity who knows my personal blue print, for healing of all thoughts and memories that are holding me back.
As I clear what is within me, I experience peace within. I no longer personalize what people do or say wrongly to me but realize that I created it so I am responsible for their actions and the experience is an opportunity for me to heal myself so that I can heal them as well. I repeat the Ho’oponopono mantra: “I love you”, “I am sorry”, “Please forgive me”, “Thank you”, saying it to the Divine while holding a sense of the situation in my heart to clear the shared negative energy from me and the other party to ensure none of us has to experience the wrong energy again.
The law of love is regarded as the greatest spiritual law by my spiritual master, Jesus Christ. I see the purpose of the Ho’oponopono prayer as something to make me remember my identity – that my true nature is love. I am a small universe and everything outside me is a projection of what I feel inside, so, if I feel love and gratitude, I will attract love and more things to be grateful for. Everyone wants to be loved (including me). By repeating the mantra, “I love you” inside my world, I cleanse myself and radiate an energy that others feel. As I make calls, write e-mails, discuss with people, I send vibration or energy of love to people and things by saying, “I love you” in my mind – the idea is to love everything God created unconditionally so as to experience the Divine.
vii. I can heal whatever comes my way, but to heal others, I have to heal myself first.
I am a healer, but if I take on people’s weaknesses instead of cleaning them away, I become helpless to heal. The healing process begins with the realization that the problem is not the sick or the healer but error memories replaying in the subconscious being shared by both. I found out that the reason why my words do not change a person is my erroneous thought that I am the one who will do the work, but in reality my own work is to first heal myself of the sickness I see in others. What I see in people is what is in me, and by healingmyself, we’ll both get well.
Someone said, “If you can spot it, you’ve got it”. Now I know that whatever comes up in my life or other people’s lives that I don’t like is for me to heal; if I see error and it bothers me, then it’s up for healing. I may have no idea why such a person or situation should be in my life however my responsibility is to heal what comes up. The healing process entails focusing on the Ho’oponopono mantra, and directing the “four line” prayer towards the thing or someone thus:
“I love you” (the divine in the person who is the subject of this prayer)
“I am sorry” (for whatever it is within me that has created this suffering. I take full responsibility for it)
“Please forgive me” (and release whatever caused this suffering)
“Thank you” (for this opportunity to clear, to release this suffering)
With the prayer, I restore my mind to its divine–like state, before I acquired memories while growing up that robbed me of my power to heal.
3. How will these ideas or lessons help you in a practical way, both in your daily personal life and in helping you to create a better world? If so, how?
I feel good that I have the power to heal the world and make a difference if I can love everything and everyone using the Ho’oponopono mantra to fill my heart with love, understanding, and compassion. When people and places can’t feel love, things go wrong but I can create everlasting healing and change by requesting the Divine through prayer to heal people’s hearts.
Through inspiration I can receive directive from the Divine, by surrendering and listening, and then acting on it I can create miracles in the world. I now see life beyond setting goals and having personal intentions that put me in control; things achieved seldom bring peace without letting go of my ego and its desire and allowing the Divine have its way through me and guide to positively impact the world.
The world works when I play my part, ensuring that I speak, think and act from inspiration and not memory so as to take full control of circumstances around me. A life independent of external conditions is not defensive and vulnerable; I have to move away from complaints, criticisms and condemnations of people and situations that hinder inspiration.
The lessons I gained made it clear that the solution is not “out there” but inside me in respect of challenges in my relationships, finances, or health; I only need to take away self or ego and merge with Divinity at Zero. As long as I keep saying “I love you” to the Divine and I keep cleaning, I return to the place of zero limit and flow with the universe, leaving my mind open to receive what it needs to heal the world. Getting connected to the Divine makes me neutralize collective fear energy, to make me and others leave the company of people prone to traps, worries and doubts in the world.
By taking 100 percent responsibility for myself and others, and allowing the removal of judgmental thoughts and words within me, I can heal myself and anything in the world. The problem isn’t with the evil doers, the politician, or the bad economy – anything I experience and don’t like is up for me to heal. To heal others, I have to heal myself first- problems don’t exist except as thoughts inside me, everything that happens in the world is in my life – the entire world is my creation. To improve the world, I have to heal my life because I am the world; everything outside is a projection of what is in me.
To heal myself and the world I have to realize that there is nothing wrong in the outside world, it is me who decided to hold all errors of the world in my soul, that is why Irecite the Ho’oponopono mantra to my soul who needs to hear it to begin healing process. By cleaning my toxic thoughts and replacing them with love and forgiveness everything in the world becomes good.
I’ve been led to a deeper awareness and enlightenment of the existence of peace that passes all understanding attainable in Love – my words, deeds and presence ought to bring people into harmony with peace. My responsibility in life is to bring peace to the planet, to say “I love you” to anything that comes my way, whether I saw it in my memory as good or bad. Debbie Ford said, “You must go into the dark in order to bring forth your light.” The world may be in darkness but it is my duty to create light. People just want to be loved, and my true nature is to love and make others know what to do to become a light in the world. Personally, I’ve realized that I am on the journey of transforming my life and others into an incredible experience by practicing and sharing the simplicity of the message of Ho’opnopono, and I believe a world without prisons can be witnessed when the message goes round.
4. Quotes: Are there brief quotes from the book which really got your attention? If so, please list and comment on them.
“We can imagine a world where there is no victor or vanquished, where there is no victim, oppressor or oppressed.”
We are not victims of any situation, one can realize this by no longer seeing anyone as the oppressor or aggressor but see oneself as the source of all negativity that arise. Despite the absence of good leaders in all institutions around us, we need not point accusing fingers at anyone but forgiving the energy surrounding all problems using the Ho’oponopono prayer.
“Life cannot be encountered and understood objectively, unless we are in a state of complete freedom and serenity of the mind.”
Life is newness: old minds with memory baggage cannot be used to encounter life successfully. The Ho’oponopono prayer is a powerful way to silence the mind to live in the moment, to clear the mind of the old stuffs – the barrier of the ego is broken by confessing love and gratitude in the prayer.
“Peace in the world begins with me.”
Absence of peace in one soul can be catastrophic as we can see in Adolf Hitler who facilitated a world war that killed millions of people due to his state of mind. The truth is that my state of mind or emotional health reaches others through me as we are all one, and it all happens inside. Consciousness of my oneness with the universe helps in knowing that if I have peace in my mind, its vibration has effect on the whole world.
5. Is there anything in the book that you do not understand or are unclear about, or are there ideas which you disagree with and if so, why?
There is nothing in the book that I did not understand or unclear about, and I disagree with no idea.
6. Did the book contain exercises for the reader to complete? If so, did you complete all the exercises and did you find them helpful?
The book contains no exercises for the reader to complete.
7. Was there anything you read in the book that you would like to comment on that was not covered in the previous questions? If so, please comment.
I have nothing else to comment about in the book.
Please rate the following questions on a scale of 1 to 10. Ten is good and one is poor.
A. How interesting was it to read? 9
B. How helpful were the contents? 10
C. How easy was it to read? 9
D. Would you recommend it to others? 10
E. What is the overall rating you would give it? 9.5
The Heartmath Solution
Assessment by Ayoade Anthony (Nigeria)
1. What is the main idea that the author is trying to convey in the book?
The book provides information and techniques on how to access heart-intelligence to improve our decision- making, our health, our relationships, and productivity at work. It gives tools, namely, freeze-frame, cut-thru and heart lock-in to make us aware of our thoughts, emotions, attitudes, actions and reactions.
2. What were the seven ideas which were personally most important to you and why? List these seven ideas followed by an explanation after each one as to why it was important to you. Use personal examples from your own life.
i. The world can be improved by listening to and following our hearts.
The fact that the heart is not sentimental, but intelligent and powerful, makes it hold the promise for the next level of human development and survival of our world. Today we need heart intelligence more than ever before to effect positive changes in a world where global challenges are increasing- poor leadership credibility, threats of terrorism, global weather changes and uncertainties co-exist. Albert Einstein had stated that, “The significant problems we face today cannot be solved at the same level of thinking we were at when we created them.”
I can see that heart intelligence exists within all people but lies largely dormant, the awareness of its presence in me has made me seen the need to contribute more to my community; to express love for others whereby I begin to find ways to improve other people’s lives. The benefits of applying heart–based skills in my home and work place to bring improvement in the health and emotional balance of individuals are quite appealing. Stress and strife thrive as a result of emotional challenges in the lives of individuals, so I have decided to do away with worries and to listen to others with open mind. I agree that cultivation of heart intelligence is the richest resource today in overcoming division and strife in the world.
ii. The heart sends emotional and intuitive signals to help govern our lives.
It happens to me that I want to feel positive emotions than negative but often the events around me seems to be spinning out of control, despite my best intentions. I have now learnt that my heart sends emotional and intuitive signals to help govern my life, aligning systems in my body to function in harmony with one another. I can deliberately activate core heart feelings of love, forgiveness, gratitude, care, compassion, honesty, and patience to make my heart slow down so that my thoughts become more rational and focused to deal with challenging situations.
When two pendulum clocks are mounted side by side on the same wall, they gradually come to swing in synchrony. This is a classic example of the phenomenon of entrainment, which occurs throughout nature – in living and non-living things. In general, when systems entrain, they operate with increased efficiency. In the human body, the heart, as the body’s most powerful rhythmic oscillator is the central “pendulum” that sets the stage for entrainment of other physiological systems, bringing greater intuitive clarity and sense of well–being. My performance and health is enhanced by making my heart get to entrained state at will by falling in harmony with a piece of art work, an inspiring music, or by activating the core heart feelings above to feel more relaxed and at peace.
iii. Success in life is based more on our ability to manage our emotions than on our intellectual capabilities.
It is not accidental that the heart starts beating in the unborn fetus before the brain has been formed. The heart controls the brain and has the capacity to “think for itself” if it is ‘trained’ through meditation; it is only with the heart that humans can see rightly. Developing heart or emotional intelligence involves the self-awareness of “becoming aware of both our mood and our thoughts about our mood,” and applying these to decision-making. The good thing is that, unlike IQ, emotional intelligence can be developed and increased throughout life. Meditation helps in learning to listen more deeply to my heart thereby increasing my intelligence and ability to clearly perceive the world around me and create positive emotions such as happiness, gratitude, compassion, care, and love needed for success in life.
I have learned that the brain or head knows things and keeps doing them in set patterns; instead of seeing things from a fresh perspective, it can stubbornly presume that it “knows what it knows” about people places and ideas, blocking the heart from seeing and accepting new possibilities. This opened my eyes to see the reason why it is difficult for me to change old habits or convince others to cultivate empowering habits. On the other hand, when information is received with the heart it is processed more intuitively. Ultimately, the head “knows” but the heart “understands.”
The heart is like radio transmitter broadcasting twenty-four hours a day but the quality of the signals it sends to the brain or head is governed by every thought and feeling- the challenge is how to make the brain surrender long enough to connect with heart intelligence. The heart has deeper insight and intuitive understanding; hence it is better made to make wise decisions by listening to it. Reacting to life from the head alone had previously led me into childish, inelegant behavior in the past; however, I now try to connect with the heart before taking decisions.
iv. Stress is the body and mind’s response to any pressure that disrupts their normal balance.
Stress occurs when our perceptions of events don’t meet our expectations and we don’t manage our reaction to the disappointment, energy is drained through continuous generation of stress hormones like adrenalin that becomes damaging to the body on the long run. Chronic stress accumulates day by day but hardly noticed because everyone is going through the same hustle and bustle. The secret of managing and reducing stress is to broaden our perception of the events through the heart, and then comes an improved communication between the heart and the brain, and coherence is achieved. If we see pain there will be pain, but if we don’t, the pain will be gone- we attract what we think and what we say- stress or disease cannot take hold without a host who accepts it.
To live without stress in all the turmoil that we have requires exploring new ideas, like the Freeze-Frame, Cut-Thru, and Heart Lock-in. The Freeze Frame technique is meant to give a brief mental time – out that allows one to gain immediate access to the balancing core heart feelings. Emotions are very complex and our emotional patterning can be hard to change hence the Cut-Thru provides technique to go deeper into the reality of heart intelligence. Like the term “cut through”, it means “getting to the heart of the matter”. It is about letting go of personal grudges and perspectives, of the need to wallow in wrong feelings.
The Freeze-Frame and Cut-Thru techniques are used when we need to clear away blocks and shift from a limiting emotion to an effective state of mind – they’re like weeding a garden. On the other hand, Heart Lock-In is used for deeper relaxation, regeneration, and awareness and enhances effectiveness of other techniques – it nourishes the soil of the garden. I can deduce that performing effective meditation can really serve the purpose of the above techniques.
v. Activating core heart feelings increase energy assets and reduces energy deficits.
It is good to know that I can consciously choose core heart feelings such as a sincere appreciation, care, non- judgment, forgiveness which are all aspects of love to effectively intercept non-efficient thoughts, feelings and attitudes that drain and damage my body system. I need to identify events that create energy assets and one that leads to energy deficits such as irritation, frustration, anger, blame, and judgment that creates stress. By accumulating more assets than deficits, my quality of life increases significantly. I have seen that people who are typically angry, hostile and aggressive tend to have increased rates of heart disease and premature death later in life. This makes me see the need to desist from arguments exposing me to damaging physiological responses.
The four power tools of the heart identified by “the HeartMath Solution” viz: appreciation, non-judgment, forgiveness, and care come from the depth of our being – the core of the heart. These are feelings that swallow stress and can change our lives and the world, if properly directed. I cherish the feeling of appreciation as it makes me feel better emotionally, mentally and physically. With sincerity it is easy to find something to appreciate in one’s life, especially the so-called little things. I can see that wanting and longing for more without first appreciating the good things I already have brings inner insecurity. Weighing my challenges against the many things I can find to appreciate in my “gratitude register” now puts me in the right mood.
Non- judgmental attitude and forgiveness are love-based. A heart filled with love has no strong opinion about what it likes or doesn’t like or who’s right and who’s wrong. I had joined the bandwagon of the masses in the past who try to impose their opinion on others- pointing fingers and considering ourselves superior. This attitude block understanding and new intelligence- only the heart allows new understanding to become available. By stopping quick identification of people’s faults, I notice that I have more peace within. I can see the difference between making judgment from the head and from the heart, the former leads to arguments in defense of my position while the latter is tainted with compassion and love. Assuming my mind “knows what it knows” had led me to negative judgment of people and situations – based on my limited information. It is fascinating that repeating the mantra, “I love you, I am sorry, Please forgive me, Thank you” that I learned in the book “Zero Limits” to people and situations that want to make me judgmental is helpful.
I am enlightened that I have to forgive myself before I can totally forgive others. It is similar to the divine admonition by Jesus Christ: remove the log in your eyes so that you can see clearly enough to remove the log in other people’s eyes. As stated earlier, I have to stop blaming myself for what happened in the past. New freedom comes as I clean out old mindsets, hurts and pains. To become exemplary, I have to see and do things beyond the obvious – making a deeper heart connection and acting from the heart with forgiveness, non judgment and appreciation.
vi. Care is a powerful motivator but over-care is its opposite.
Care, I believe is at the top of the list when it comes to societal needs; it is a powerful motivator and one of the most important core heart feelings that reinforce our connection with others. Caring for someone or something is beneficial to the giver and receiver as it goes directly to our hearts. Having handshakes and physical touch with heart–based emotions like care transmits electromagnetic signals that promote well–being and health – the implication of having a bad emotion and moving about among people can be imagined. It is good to know that feeling of care or compassion has a measurable effect on the immune system. However, when care from the heart is bombarded by niggling worries, anxieties, and assumptions from the head, it becomes over-care that can degrade from a helpful experience into fear and depression. I’ve tried to become more cognizant of my over-care by listening to my heart intelligence to avoid too much care that causes worry, anxiety, fear, depression, disappointment, guilt, jealousy and stress, either mildly or strongly. I’ve learnt that caring too much about life’s conformity to my expectations or focusing on what I don’t have in comparison to others is an act of over-care leading to worries and other wrong emotions.
vii. Our world is a reflection of our inner thoughts and feelings.
Mankind, for centuries lack right thoughts and feelings, therefore wrong emotions had been the potent inner force behind a large majority of the wars and conflicts in the world. Before I got to this level in my personal development growth I used to get depressed without really knowing the reason. I now know that my unmanaged thoughts and accumulation of emotional experiences stored in my emotional memory bank created my emotions or feelings. I did not know how to deliberately create core heart feelings like love, joy, gratitude from my heart. Like every human, my brain had been wired to react in similar way to every situation that looks like what had depressed me in the past as it searches my emotional memory bank.
What I am learning here is so much relevant to my counseling job- that what a troubled person feels in his body is not as important as what he or she feels in their body. To make people get emotional freedom, my job is to make people get connected with their own core heart feelings, to make them have intuitive perception shifts. Engaging my own heart intelligence gives me greater intuitive insight to guide people in my life on how to overcome bad thoughts and feelings that limit success.
3. How will these ideas or lessons help you in a practical way, both in your daily personal life and in helping you to create a better world? If so, how?
Once I have identified absence of heart intelligence as the source of the challenges we have in the world, I can make a world of difference by having control over my emotions and by seeing the gift in all situations. Life will always be filled with mistakes and people who don’t do what I want and things I can’t control, however, I need not play blame game but get connected with my heart to help me perceive what to do. I can motivate myself and roll with the twists and turns of life instead of allowing them to get me down- by using emotional intelligence. Sticking to principles that makes me hide behind self-righteousness is wrong; it separates me from my heart and my potential connection to others. My sense of principle will henceforth not be used to sanction being indignant, judgmental or resentful because something isn’t fair or right in my eyes. People may hurt my feelings but I have made up my mind to stop justifying stress-producing attitude and making statements such as these:
“It’s just not fair;” “It’s the principle of the thing;” “I have a right to be angry;”
“I just can’t help it.”
It had been wrong on my part in the past to cede my power to others by allowing what they do to choke and strangle my compassion but now I have to look to the power of my heart to give healthier responses.
I am ready to learn the right emotions or core heart feelings of love, forgiveness, gratitude, care, compassion, honesty, and patience which I demand from others to improve quality of life for a better world. People today are more exposed to information from the media than any other generation and they imbibe values antithetical to respect, loyalty, gratitude and emotional support. Here, I see the need for me to be emotionally intelligent so as to influence people around me. My thoughts affect the energy around me, so I can make the world as beautiful as how I want it to be through my inner thoughts and feelings. According to physics of collective consciousness, I can create positive energy by generating empowering feelings, thoughts and attitudes that affect others strongly on emotional levels. Electromagnetic field of the heart extends beyond the body, transcending time and space, so I can further understand how prayer works and use it more to effect positive changes in the world.
Stress is a negative energy that first gets broadcast person to person – in homes, schools, offices, and streets. Then, amplified through various bad news in the media, the stress momentum goes global, reaching billions of people daily. Now, I try as much as possible to discriminate what I hear that impact my thoughts and moods negatively, so as to reduce the stress frequency in the world. I am glad that the transition into heart intelligence has already started and that is why we are having institutions like IIGL in the world today, representing a dimensional shift in human awareness and heart connection of like-minds. I love and appreciate being part of such organizations that promote peace and prosperity in the world based on heart intelligence of appreciation, care, compassion, and love.
4. Quotes: Are there any statements which the author made that particularly gets your attention? If so, please quote them and comment as to why they were important to you?
“When things appear to be chaotic, it’s often because they’re in the process of reshaping and transforming for the better.”
We should not be disillusioned to expect immediate results especially when we are dealing with long–standing mental and emotional issues, for there are no quick fixes – every good thing takes time and effort to bring results.
“It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye.”
The role of the heart as an intelligence within the body is stated in the above quote, we know the truth not only by reason, but also by the heart which always sees, before the head can see.
“There are no facts, only interpretations.” Nietzsche
Someone looking at an issue from a different point of view might draw a different conclusion completely. Anything good or bad about an issue has been added by our interpretation, which is totally subjective.
5. Is there anything in the book that you do not understand or are unclear about, or are there ideas which you disagree with and if so, why?
There is nothing in the book that I did not understand or unclear about, and I disagree with no idea.
6. Did the book contain exercises for the reader to complete? If so, did you complete all the exercises and did you find them helpful?
The book contains no exercises for the reader to complete.
7. Was there anything you read in the book that you would like to comment on that was not covered in the previous questions? If so, please comment.
I have nothing else to comment about in the book.
Please rate the following questions on a scale of 1 to 10. Ten is good and one is poor.
A. How interesting was it to read? 9
B. How helpful were the contents? 10
C. How easy was it to read? 9
D. Would you recommend it to others? 10
E. What is the overall rating you would give it? 9.5
Quantum Healing
Assessment by Ayoade Anthony (Nigeria)
1. What is the main idea that the author is trying to convey in the book?
The book teaches that quantum healing is holistic healing, that mind–body concept and the awesome power in our minds can be used to spontaneously heal our bodies. It attempts to bring scientific understanding to spirituality.
2. What were the seven ideas which were personally most important to you and why? List these seven ideas followed by an explanation after each one as to why it was important to you. Use personal examples from your own life.
i. Healing is not primarily a physical process but a mental one.
Behind every healing is an unseen powerful force that we can relate with consciously through thoughts to destroy any disease in the body. A mind left on its own easily assumes a state of disorderliness; however it gets balanced if it is made to stay in the domain of emptiness or silence through meditative contemplation of nature. Nature has the power to free up our nature. We are surrounded by the best of all healing influences – fresh air, sunlight, and beauty. Nature is man’s healer, because Nature is man. “The sun is our right eye and the moon our left eye” according to Ayurveda. Nature fashioned the bodies we inhabit by bathing us in the moon, the sun, and the sea. I am beginning to see the appreciation of beautiful works of nature as a healing process for the mind and body. Spending some time in nature- looking at the plants, the sky, the stars, the moon, and the trees facilitates a level of total, deep relaxation of mind needed for healing.
ii. The body has a built-in intelligence of its own and knows how to heal itself.
The body has different chemicals and connections making it perform its function, but without the intelligence of the DNA which is present in all the matter or cells in our bodies doing the coordination, healing is difficult. It has been proved that this almost infinitely complex molecule encoded all the information necessary to create and sustain human life. The computer guru, Bill Gates recently stated that “the DNA is like a software program, only much more complex than anything we’ve ever devised”. This intelligence flows through the body anywhere and everywhere without ceasing like a river through the cascades of brain chemicals needed to make us think, and chemicals made by the immune system to protect us from disease. In effect, what happens to one organ of the body affects other organs. If I am joyful, I am joyful everywhere, having a joyful brain, joyful skin, joyful liver, and so on. Essentially, mind and body are under same intelligence – alike and inseparable – revealing how an empowering emotion can create healing and wrong emotion can multiply illnesses.
iii. The beauty of the human body is that it is new every moment.
Just as the river is constantly being changed by new water rushing in, the body is so dynamic in the function of its organs and components. 98% of the atoms in a body were not there a year ago. I found it quite revealing that the skeleton that seems so solid changes in its configuration every three months. This is true for the skin which is new every month, and the stomach lining becomes new every four days. Even within the brain, whose cells are not replaced once they die, the content of carbon, nitrogen, oxygen, and so on is totally different today from a year ago. We use up carbon, nitrogen, oxygen, and hydrogen so fast in form of food, air and water that we would be creating new bodies for ourselves literally every month, if it were up to only these four elements. All these changes cannot be taking place without an intelligence that is so alive.
In actual sense the operation within my body is like a cosmic computer, with every thought, my mind manages to move the atoms of hydrogen, carbon, oxygen, and other particles in the brains cells. I can be a quantum healer by understanding that I have a fluid body that is an effect caused by my thoughts. I can use these thoughts to heal and perform better than a scientific healer who only understands the stable and fixed body.
iv. Healing takes place when the mind is void of memories.
Beyond what we see physically is something more real beyond our senses -memory. For example, a pianist plays a piece of music via the mechanical vibrations of the instrument and the nerve impulses produced in his brain. The reality of music is the shimmering, beautiful form that haunts our memories; in other words, the mechanical vibrations of the musical instrument are not as real as the beautiful music it gives. Likewise, the abnormal organs of the sick person are not as real as the distorted memory that has wrapped itself inside the cells of the organs. If I allow my mind to be filled with memories of sickness, this will be the reality despite all medication. Understanding this invisible mind-body connection is important in order to experience quantum healing.
Memories in my mind can alter the performance of DNA in my body and my immune system such that an effective drug being used may become ineffective. Until the ghost of memory is exorcised, my sickness may remain. Beyond the body being made of matter, it is made out of experiences of what I eat and how I sleep, the thoughts that go through my mind and all things I see, hear, touch, and smell.
While watching TV and doing other activities, I am actually accumulating experiences that is impossible to see or to stop. I should therefore be mindful of everything I see, hear, smell, and touch because they turn into my experience, piling up into hidden information that may crop above the surface as a disease. I suffice the experiences of what my senses perceive can also have healing effect. I now remember when I was a child that I used to perceive a peculiar smell within the hospital environment which gave me therapeutic effects.
The information that a person who gave up a bad habit many years ago can still go back to it is useful for me in counseling others and in my personal life. An addiction is a distorted memory whose treatment must include exorcising the ghost of memory which can be done through meditation.
v. Nothing is as important about the universe as my participation in it.
I am the universe and a world on its own. This is emphasized in a text in Ayurveda, a traditional Indian science of life thus: As in the human body and mind, so is the cosmic body and mind. It means that as I go about my daily activities, I am in charge of two worlds, the little one in me and the big one around me. My appraisal of every minute detail in the outer world, the sun, the sky, and the words others say is matched by an event inside me. I have infinite chances to alter the shape of the world every second, for it has no shape other than what I give it in my assessment.
Nothing is as important in the universe as my participation in it because I can make it as good as my inner world. I can choose not to be sick in my inner world by not getting convinced by the symptoms and be free of its fear. The essence of meditation is to lead my mind to a “free zone” in my inner world that is not touched by disease: I realized that I had been giving my sickness an undeserved strength because I did not know such a place exists. I can further understand what Waldo Emerson said that, “once you make a decision, the universe conspires to make it happen” because I am the universe.
vi. What we see is what we become.
The faith I exhibit in my thoughts and reassuring words towards the sick can make a world of difference. I can make the sick believe a dummy drug will work for his ailment and he gets healed – positive belief has effect on immune response. In the book, “The HeartMath Solution” that I have read, I got the idea that there are two centers of action within people, the head and the heart, however the heart can see better than the head. I can be a quantum healer by building people’s heart, using love and caring. I can also become hopeful, courageous and positive about getting healed if I am sick. If the mind sees pain, there is pain, but if it doesn’t, the pain will be gone.
Immune system directly responds to outside stimuli, not just to the internal environment of the bloodstream. I have the power to create my own reality. If I believe in prayer of healing, my nervous system is set for no limitation, and an impulse of intelligence makes healing to happen. An ancient saying is, “What you see, you become” – it is the truth that shapes the whole physiology including the brain. I watched a documentary recently about a small child going through health challenges affecting him psychologically. His health improved and the power of the mind to heal the body was revealed when a comedian came regularly to create fun for him. It is noteworthy that showering love and care on others can have effect on their physiology and good health.
There are essentially no boundaries other than the one I erected by my ego in my mind that I am separate from what is out there, but if I can see that “things out there” are not different from “things I have” I will have a sound mind devoid of fear and consequently a sound body.
vii. A disease cannot take hold without a host who accepts it.
Someone can have the passive awareness that he is sick and not the active awareness that he can pay attention to his body and it becomes healed. I have come to the realization that healing is available for any sickness but everything is under the control of attention – what I focus creates, controls, and becomes my body.
The DNA of the body receives messages transmitted by the mind using positive emotions or bliss as its messenger. Essentially, the message, the messenger, and the receiver work as one in same body. In traditional Indian healing treatment, primordial sound is used as the messenger during meditation to bring the awareness of bliss directly to the diseased area of the body. To find out how it is done is as doomed as tearing apart a radio’s wiring to find where the music (bliss) is.
In the “circle of life”, the bliss is a loop connecting the mind, body and DNA in a lifelong conversation. What one of the three does or knows affects others- lack of this consciousness creates dis-ease in the mind-body system. In my inner space I can heal my body by “talking” to my DNA through prayer, singing or listening to music to reshape the distortion in my “circle of life”. I can see this as the reason why praying, singing Christian hymns and listening to classical music always has soothing effect in my mind, now I can deliberately direct the bliss to any part of my body that needs attention.
I can be healed of any sickness to the degree that I allow the bliss or positive emotions to make impression in my sensory organs which is felt by my mind through the DNA in the body. A disease cannot take hold without a host who accepts it – my consciousness determines my state of health.
3. How will these ideas or lessons help you in a practical way, both in your daily personal life and in helping you to create a better world? If so, how?
I have testimonies of people who were miraculously healed, and I am happy to discover that I can also be a quantum healer in the world using my inner power of positive thoughts and words to create vibrations to re-arrange DNA and reprogram molecular structures of the body irrespective of what any scientific doctor says. It was proved in the book, “The Hidden Messages of Water” that molecular structure of water can be changed by sound and humans are 70 percent made of water. I can improve my visualization and meditation techniques to enhance the quality of vibration of my thoughts and words to create healing.
The global unrest we are witnessing is related to our unbalanced thinking and feeling, now more than ever before I realize that I need to focus on love, kindness and respect for others and this planet. My consciousness had been transformed to know that I have a role to play in the overall health of the planet and the future of humanity through the power of my thoughts. Everything is under the control of one mind- I can be in any physical place or location in my mind; for I am part of any place in the universe. I am not an onlooker peering into the universe; I am an infinite being, unlimited by time and space. Every thought I think create a wave in the unified field. Like a candle or any light sending waves as far as infinity in all directions, I am a light radiating consciousness that ripples through all layers of ego, intellect, sense and matter, spreading out in wider and wider circles. As they radiate, my thoughts have effect on everything in nature – I am a co–creator of life. I can produce subtle changes everywhere by refusing to be bounded in my awareness. The distinction between my inner world and outer world is a false one. “In God we live and have our being” is my favorite Biblical verse that authenticates this idea. To transform the world I have to get detached from my own agenda, my own fear, my own ego, and my own limiting emotions and going beyond my conscious mind to have a feeling that I am connected to something much bigger than me to experience a flow traditionally called “prayer.” I can heal myself and the world through such contemplative prayer.
When I lacked consciousness, I used to get depressed thinking about the essence of life until new revelations of deeper realities I receive show that my life is purposeful. I only have to dig deeper and deeper to understand further the mysteries behind all creations to inspire me towards accomplishment of my goals so as to make the world better.
4. Quotes: Are there any statements which the author made that particularly got your attention? If so, please quote them and comment as to why they were important to you.
“In the deeper reality beyond space and time, we may be all members of one body.”
-Sir James Jeans
We need the consciousness that we are not limited to our physical bodies- all that exists around us is part of us. If we realize this fact there will be fewer challenges in the world today.
“It is the scorpion’s nature to sting, but it is my nature to save.”
The essence of compassion lies in recognizing how hard it is to be good irrespective of what others do. Doing good to others strengthen my Divine Connection and as a result I attract abundance which includes my well-being.
5. Is there anything in the book that you do not understand or are unclear about, or are there ideas which you disagree with and if so, why?
There is nothing in the book that I did not understand or unclear about, and I disagree with no idea.
6. Did the book contain exercises for the reader to complete? If so, did you complete all the exercises and did you find them helpful?
The book contains no exercises for the reader to complete.
7. Was there anything you read in the book that you would like to comment on that was not covered in the previous questions? If so, please comment.
I have nothing else to comment about in the book.
Please rate the following questions on a scale of 1 to 10. Ten is good and one is poor.
A. How interesting was it to read? 9
B. How helpful were the contents? 10
C. How easy was it to read? 9
D. Would you recommend it to others? 10
E. What is the overall rating you would give it? 9.5
The Autobiography of Martin Luther King Jr.
Assessment by Ayoade Anthony (Nigeria)
1. What is the main idea that the author is trying to convey in the book?
The book teaches how love and reason can create a win–win situation using nonviolence demonstrated by Martin Luther King’s life. It reveals that power of body and soul can be used to create change.
2. What were the seven ideas which were personally most important to you and why? List these seven ideas followed by an explanation after each one as to why it was important to you. Use personal examples from your own life.
i. Environment influences our lives
The character of parents rubs off on children’s attitude and behavior – this fact shows in the life of King and his wife, Coretta who was devoted, understanding, dedicated and patient. Their home background gave them ethical and moral values needed to deal with the struggle they got involved in. King’s choice of career was determined by the profession that was in the family. His strong determination for justice and self-will were gained from the very strong, dynamic personality of his father, and his gentle aspect came from her gentle mother. King’s father never made more than an ordinary salary but his secret is that he always had sense enough not to live beyond his means. The effects of the noble moral and ethical ideals of King’s parents can be seen in his life and family.
The death of King’s grandmother had a tremendous effect on his development due to the strong love he had for her. The assurance he was given by his parents as a child that somehow she still lived made him a strong believer in immortality. King faced racial discrimination as he was growing up that made him to have feelings of hatred for every white person but his parents would always tell him that it was his duty as a Christian to love everyone. All the barbarous and oppressive acts he witnessed against blacks affected his conscience and did something to his growing personality.
King’s civil rights activism was fueled by his exposure to ideas from radical teachers and books at Morehouse College on non-violent resistance. One person that shaped his civil rights movement is Henry David Thoreau’s message that evil must be resisted and that no moral man can patiently adjust to injustice. In Ghandi’s philosophy on love and non-violence, King discovered the method for social reform that he had been seeking.
ii. Wisdom comes as a result of our observations
King had observed the typical white stereotype of the Negro, that he is always late, that he’s loud and always laughing, that he’s dirty and messy, and he decided to behave contrary to these identifications. He had observed that any religion that profess concern for the souls of men should be concerned about the slums that damn them, the economic conditions that strangle them and the social conditions that cripple them. He observed that a preacher must be both sincere and intelligent, that too many preachers in the pulpit are great spell binders and too few possess spiritual power. As an aspirant of the ministry, he observed that what he preaches should grow out of the experiences of the people and he needs oratory power and spiritual power to become exemplary.
King decided to be a profound advocate of the social gospel. He read widely to identify the limitations of different political ideologies in existence in order to choose the appropriate path to follow. As a youth, he could observe that it is good to give one’s life early to God who is eternal and absolute, not to those little gods that are here today and gone tomorrow. I came across a quote by Thich Nhat that says, “To meditate means to observe”, I can see the reason why King is a good observant: His autobiography reveals his deep love for meditation.
iii. King speaks to us through his creations
King made it a practice to go out to the edge of the campus in his seminary days every afternoon for at least one hour to commune with nature. He would sit by the side of the river and watch the beauties of nature and see God in birds of the air, the leaves of the tree, and the movement of the rippling waves. It was his custom to have one hour of meditation every Sunday to prepare himself for preaching, watching the sun rise in the eastern horizon from his window. I love King’s meditative lifestyle. He uses every opportunity including travelling on road and in air to observe and hear from nature – the trees, the clouds and skies and stars in the skies at night. He feels frustrated over inability to retreat, concentrate and reflect to the extent that he decided to relocate from Montgomery to Atlanta so as to have enough time to take one day a week as a day of silence and meditation.
Nature speaks to us through all its creations. His visit to Trivandrum, India, where the mass of India ends and the vast rolling waters of the ocean have their beginning revealed the beauty of God. At the scene, three great bodies of water meet together in all of their majestic splendor: The Bay of Bengal, the Arabian Sea and the Indian Ocean. He saw the magnificent sun, a red cosmic bell of fire as it appeared to sink into the very ocean itself, simultaneously on the other side is the moon, another bell of scintillating beauty appeared to be rising from the ocean. After the sun disappeared, darkness engulfed the earth, but in the east the radiant light of the rising moon shone supreme. I explained this scenery recently in a sermon I gave in my congregation on “Hearing from God”- that natural works is one of the marvelous ways God speaks to us but it is left for us to hear the message. King heard the message, so he was able to share it with the world that God has the light that can shine through all the darkness. In our lives we’ve had experiences when the light of day vanishes leaving us hopeless, feeling there is no light anywhere. But ever and again, we look elsewhere and discover that there is another light which shines even in the darkness, and frustration is transformed into hope. Really, nature provides answer to all the puzzles of our lives, we only need an open mind to interpret the message it gives. I equally believe God speaks to us through His creations; He exists in all works of nature, by staying in silence I can listen to Him for guidance before making decisions on important issues. I find answers to pertinent questions by plunging into periods of solitude and contemplation.
iv. Exemplary People have special habits
The broad-mindedness of King is personally noteworthy; like Nelson Mandela, he believed the solution of race problem should combine the views of all the parties involved and anyone who believes that the road to solution is only one lane wide will inevitably create a traffic jam and make the journey infinitely longer.
Success is gained as a result of right decisions made possible through careful planning that gives guidance and direction. The right way is not always the popular and easy way, but standing for right when it is unpopular is a true test of moral character as exemplified by King. He proved that the ultimate test of a man is not where he stands in moment of comfort, and moments of convenience, but where he stands in moments of challenge and moments of controversy.
He had the habit of admitting his faults and mistakes and learning from them. He tasted defeat as well as success, and discovered how to live with each. King openly regretted his decision to get bailed from prison while the struggle against segregation in Albany was going on. As a good leader he showed habit of humility that he doesn’t know everything and confessed that if he had the failed protest to do again, he would guide Albany’s Negro leadership differently than he did. The errors he learned in Albany however served as useful lessons in developing strategy for the next tough freedom campaign in Birmingham, revealing to me the fact that every failure has lessons to teach. I also should not be ashamed to change a plan that is not working once I discover a better plan.
v. Hate is a contagion that grows and spreads as a disease
Hate is the mother of violence; only nonviolence can achieve a reign of justice and a rule of love – if any society is to survive. Black supremacy being preached by Black Nationalism is also a tyranny as morally corrupt as white supremacy. I have learnt that no one is better than me and I am not better than anyone. Hate and violence once applied to a few will sooner or later be applied to all. Hate expands if I repay hatred with hatred – it brings along more destructive habits. At the end of the day it becomes an ill–wind that does no one any good, because the seed of hatred planted in the mind of the victims of the war of hatred will grow and bear fruits for everyone to reap in future. In accordance with Law of Attraction, hatred attracts hatred. Blacks whose ideology is to hate whites who practice racism using violence developed hatred and blind outrage against fellow blacks – ignoring the real issues at stake. The destruction of brother-hood, lives and properties produced by violent approach showed its costliness among American Negro. King believed that one may suffer the temptation to bitterness but it is better to “sheath the sword” according to the divine wisdom of Christ. His nonviolence philosophy made him a target of attack by the Black Nationalist groups who criticized his style. Blacks spent their energies in their own destruction, in blind outrage against each other. Hate kept reproducing itself leading to the death of Malcolm X and other potential great black leaders. Hatred brought envy, greed, and rivalry which destroyed American Negro leadership and men of talent before they reached their full maturity.
I am motivated by King’s commitment to peace and refusal to hate his detractors despite all attempts to frustrate him. Despite attempts by colleagues and enemies to keep him silent on Vietnam War for example, his conscience pushed him to condemn it.
vi. Humanity needs people who will stand up for right at any cost.
I can see the reason why people like Martin Luther King Jr. are ready to sacrifice their lives in pursuit of freedom: They have a strong desire to meet the future with a clear conscience. I also can help the weak and heal the broken–hearted by being more conscientious. I have to preach the message of hope in words and deeds to the world starting from my immediate environment to create change. I believe that I will never be what I ought to be until the “least of these” are what they ought to be. In some sense I am part of the least of these, but there are some who are least than me. I must never forget those who are less fortunate than me – I am not better than them.
I have no moral right to demand goodness from others when I am not good. I see the teachings of King as a prescription of individual surgery than a universal diagnosis. I am able to see myself as a key factor in creating change in the world despite all discouragements. King’s courage to live under the threat of death daily, to take so much abuse and criticism, sometimes from his own people has personally challenged me to stand up for right wherever it is and whatever it costs.
vii. One of the great agonies of life is that we are constantly trying to finish that which is un-finishable.
One of the great agonies of life is that we are constantly trying to finish that which cannot be finished. Once we have satisfied our conscience that we have done the best we could do, we have no reason to entertain fear concerning our fate and just be glad to leave the rest for others to finish.
According to Robin Sharma, one of my favorite authors, the purpose of man is to live wisely, to love well and to serve greatly. Martin Luther King lived such a purposeful life. Towards the end of his life, like Apostle Paul in his farewell message to the Ephesians’ Church elders, Dr. King declared in Memphis: I may not get there with you. But I want you to know tonight, that we, as a people, will get to the Promised Land. And I’m happy tonight. I’m not worried about anything. I’m not fearing any man. Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord. If I can help somebody as I pass along, if I can cheer somebody with a word or song, if I can show somebody he’s travelling wrong, then my living will not be in vain. This moving speech gives me another perspective of the purpose of life – it can be made as meaningful as we want it to be.
3. How will these ideas or lessons help you in a practical way, both in your daily personal life and in helping you to create a better world? If so, how?
In the midst of external tension, to redeem the world I need to pray and meditate so as to have the internal peace to do good always to everybody without expectations. The fact that people do not agree with my views does not make them an enemy. I have to overcome environmental limitations and develop special habits I identified in King’s life to become exemplary: open-mindedness, meditation, humility, perseverance and service to mankind. My duty is to think and speak well of others, not expecting them to live according to my rules but setting them free in my heart and getting ready always to be the change I want to see in people. Living this way will make me have good relationship with people and be at peace with everyone I have cause to interact with. It is true that the greatest way to cut off the chain of hate and evil is through love, fueled by sense of morality, so I am willing to forgive all those who have wronged me that I may live with peace of mind and give peace to others.
I have to act like a thermostat, regulating and controlling the happenings around me, not repaying evil for evil. Hate is too great a burden for me and the society to bear. Inner and outer conflicts are rooted in hate- the source of all destructive habits, as being witnessed in the world today. To be an agent of peace in the world, I must avoid blind imitation and conformity with the majority who refuse to respect individual differences; turning away from hate, seeking for justice with love, and overcoming evil with good. It is better for me to empathize with people than being aggressive because people are not their behavior; they cannot behave better than what influences them and their stories. It is the love I show that has positive effect to change people than any negative emotion I express to them. The fact that they don’t agree with me on an issue today does not mean they will not agree tomorrow when exposed to better information. Mine is to do my best and leave the rest, once I have learned that it is an agony of life to try to finish what cannot be finished.
To change the world, I need to be more observant, learning to listen more to nature in silence, becoming more responsive and getting wiser. It is a psychological axiom that frustration generates aggression that robs a society its peace. I have to be observant and sensitive to the conditions of the poor around me – they can be taunted by my affluence to act out hostilities. I am so much encouraged by King’s life that I am willing to lose my privileges if need arises for the sake of peace. Humanity waits for me to use every opportunity of leadership that comes my way to hold power infused with love and justice, to see myself not better than others, to give more and expect less, and lift people from despair to hope. Humanity waits for me to possess power with compassion, might with morality and strength with sight.
I am aware that setting out to do something good comes with a struggle in my outer and inner universes between good and evil. Change may not be easy as I recognize the fact that a wrong thing I have been doing for over forty years takes gradual process to replace; however, a bottle of dirty water placed under a tap flowing with clean water will sooner or later be filled with only clean water. By allowing love to flow through my consciousness, I become courageous, turning fear and doubt into enthusiasm and beliefs needed to serve humanity and make impact in the world.
4. Quotes: Are there any statements which the author made that particularly got your attention? If so, please quote them and comment as to why they were important to you.
“In as much as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.”
The above saying was a literal prophecy in the assassination of President J.F. Kennedy who had been a warmly loved and respected leader but had probably underestimated the desperation of promoters of segregation and discrimination in America when series of political assassinations and other sorts of killings had taken place under his government. The default of the government had been its failure to apprehend the assassins. The plague spread until it claimed the most eminent American at that time.
“A productive and happy life is not something you find; it is something you make.”
Our ability to work together to understand one another is not found ready–made, it must be created by the fact of contact. In ensuring unity and good working relationship we should not underestimate our power to change or overestimate other people’s power to change.
“I would rather die on the highways of Alabama than make a butchery of my conscience.”
Great leaders are conscientious and selfless. On many occasions Martin Luther King rejected the advice of his staff and associates and saw it as obligation to lead peaceful protests against injustice despite threats of assassination as he stated above.
“No one can ride on the back of a man unless it is bent.”
Mahatma Ghandi stated that whenever men and women straighten their backs up, they are going somewhere. One can decide to bend down in despair and defeat for someone to ride on one’s back or rise up with a straightened back to defy tyrants with a spirit of strength to fight for equality and freedom. No one can earn freedom unless he or she is willing to pay the price.
“Some of us might have to die before we get there. Some of us might be thrown in jail before we get there, but let’s just keep moving.”
Mahatma Ghandi, the architect of non-violence was able to mobilize and galvanize more people in his lifetime than any other person in history with such statements above. He broke the backbone of the British empire by making his people to “turn the other check” when slapped. I believe in the law of attraction that what we sow is what we reap. Violence creates more violence, and peace attracts peace; no matter how long it takes good will shall triumph over evil. Violence is wrong, and nonviolence is right, wrong is always wrong and right can never be wrong.
5. Is there anything in the book that you do not understand or are unclear about, or are there ideas which you disagree with and if so, why?
There is nothing in the book that I did not understand or unclear about, and I disagree with no idea.
6. Did the book contain exercises for the reader to complete? If so, did you complete all the exercises and did you find them helpful?
The book contains no exercises for the reader to complete.
7. Was there anything you read in the book that you would like to comment on that was not covered in the previous questions? If so, please comment.
I have nothing else to comment about in the book.
Please rate the following questions on a scale of 1 to 10. Ten is good and one is poor.
A. How interesting was it to read? 10
B. How helpful were the contents? 10
C. How easy was it to read? 10
D. Would you recommend it to others? 10
E. What is the overall rating you would give it? 10
The Essential Ghandi
Assessment by Ayoade Anthony (Nigeria)
1. What is the main idea that the author is trying to convey in the book?
The book is all about Mahatma Ghandi’s search for truth, his practice and gospel of non-violence. It gives the awareness that we are much stronger than we think because there is divinity in us. It preaches the principle of non–violence that has its root in love, and seeks to convert antagonists without hating them.
2. What were the seven ideas which were personally most important to you and why? List these seven ideas followed by an explanation after each one as to why it was important to you. Use personal examples from your own life.
i. Prayer and Meditation help us to realize God in our Consciousness
Ghandi lived at a great height of human expression because he had the awareness of God as a changeless reality. To realize God in my consciousness, I have to realize the power of prayer and meditation that removes ignorance to see the changeless God in a changing and ever dying world. Ghandi’s transformation from an ordinary person to a phenomenal personality shows the hand of God in creating, dissolving, and re-creating. When God rules the heart and transformed it, the result is seen in the new conduct and character of such people who have felt the presence of God within. I can give the right interpretation to the changing and challenging world and complexities around me with the consciousness of the unchanging God in me.
Prayer does not necessarily require me to ask for definite things. Such prayer helps to build inner strength and purify the heart like the Hooponopono mantra that enhances connection with the soul. Ghandi had a day of silence once a week to renew himself and grow from within. When a body is perfect within, it becomes impervious to external adverse influences and is independent of external help. The perfect state is reached when the body, mind and soul are in proper coordination but it requires a course of discipline in meditation and prayer. Ghandi’s confession on how prayer saved his life is an addition to my personal experience on power of prayer. Bitter life experiences can throw one into despair but daily prayer brings peace to the heart and adds something new to one’s life. Making God the basic trust makes trust in others become secondary; it helps me to deal with my errors and miscalculations on my way to freedom. With prayer I can cultivate the power to love all, our differences notwithstanding.
ii. Challenges bring out the indomitable will that one never knew its existence.
The hidden power of Ghandi came to the surface the first day he stepped on the soil of South Africa only to be thrown off a train due to the color of his skin. He decided to create the will to heal the disease of racial discrimination in the land. To fully wake up the giant in him to face the challenges, Ghandi decided to remove barriers that made him see himself as something separate from the rest of creation. I learned that the inner strength that produces indomitable will to overcome ego and selfish interests comes as a result of developing personal relationship with God, otherwise one cannot serve humanity.
In South Africa, Ghandi used Hindu’s Holy Scriptures, the Gita, to master his life through self–discipline and strong intention to experience God. He aspired to live by it, no matter how inconvenient it was; he decided to transform darkness to light, negatives to positives, and anger to compassion. Basic principle of Physics teaches that energy can be conserved and converted from one form to the other to achieve particular purposes. It teaches me that my bitter experiences can be converted to opportunities. I am a spiritual being who can get connected to the Divinity to know the truth that sets me free to serve humanity, when I stopped seeing myself as a victim and start seeing things in a new light.
iii. Simplification of our wants brings contentment and peace of mind.
Hedonistic nature of man desires praise and possessions that fuel the ego, but if renouncing the luxuries of life can lighten the burden of others and make their lives happy as it happened to Ghandi, then simplicity is a worthy goal. The bane of African development is corrupt public officers who amass wealth for personal aggrandizement and leaders who have their ego easily massaged by cheap praises of gullible followers for selfish reasons. There is problem when leaders and followers fail to simplify their wants. They develop insatiable appetite with no peace of mind. I desire being an embodiment of peace; to have it means to die to the world, to be jealous of none, to be selfless, to dedicate my mind and soul to God, to be free from exultation, sorrow, and fear, to treat friends and foes alike, to be untouched by respect or disrespect from people, and not be puffed up by praise. I become contented by simplifying what I want, my needs become few and I have more peace of mind. Every morning I write down my affirmations of the most important things to me in life; one of them is, “I live a life of serenity and peace of mind.”
iv. A thing can be retained by the same means by which is it is acquired.
It is important to get successful consciously so that if problems arise one can use known principles to become successful again. Attaining success is not as important as maintaining it. The grounds gained in South Africa by Ghandi and his non–resistance movement were lost when he finally went back to India. A thing acquired by truth cannot be retained when truth was given up. Individuals or bodies of individuals cannot borrow virtues which they themselves do not possess it. I learned through Ghandi that it is not expedient for me to expect others to be good if I am not good, and I can only awake people’s conscience by showing my own divinity. Ghandi ultimately won the respect of his enemies – The South African leader commended Ghandi that he never lost his temper or succumbed to hate, and preserved his gentle humor even in the most trying situations. Adversaries are converted on the long run to friends by using spirit of sacrifice and non-violence; Ghandi also used these virtues to liberate India from British colonialists.
The above idea made me to understand the source of my country’s challenges. Patriotic Nigerians with vision and worthy values used discipline, passion, and good conscience to gain independence for my country but the benefits faded away a few years later in that a thing can be retained only by the same means by which it is acquired. Fueled by nepotism and selfishness, the leaders of different nationalities that formed Nigeria lost the values they used to gain freedom for her.
v. Oppression and deception are weapons of the weak, not the strong.
Ghandi was a nationalist who tried to address the challenges of developing countries – an issue that is important to me as well. He noted that the strength of a person is known when he or she meets the weak. Colonial rulers lose their characters when they come to the colonies, resorting to oppression of the natives to make up for their weakness in numbers. Only very few Africans did not lose courage and manliness when they came in contact with the colonialists, other privileged natives collaborate to oppress fellow countrymen. This process of weakening is not good for all concerned and the world at large. I agree with Ghandi that nothing but the strictest adherence to honesty, fair play and love can advance the true interests of all. When two weak people meet, they drag each other down due to suspicions and fear of losses because there is no true love but selfishness from both ends. I have to be strong by all means, setting my own house in order so that when others see it I will be in a better position to make them do the right things.
Deception is another sign of weakness on the part of the government by training people to become slaves, whereas we need schools that educate people to think outside the box to become leaders. It is not enough to have education that makes us hunt after position and status which has made many depart from integrity and stunted individual and national growth.
vi. Death is not a tragedy
The principle of non-violence that Ghandi preached can only be practiced by someone who has no fear of death. He believed it is not always a fact that the pain of death is greater than the pain of living – it is humans who have made death a fearful thing. His practice of Hindu dictates that people die only to be born again – sorrow therefore is entirely uncalled for. Somehow or other we refuse to welcome death as we welcome birth, but we need to learn the art of never grieving over death, no matter when and to whom it comes. Ghandi’s makes me see death as not a tragedy as long as I live purposefully, it is better to leave the body that I have outgrown.
True faith lies in the belief of life after death and true love consists in transforming itself from the body to the soul and realizing the oneness of all life inhabiting numberless bodies. As I keep working for God’s purpose, I build true faith and have fewer worries; death then have no reality about it but a change like an artist who destroys a particular painting to create a better one. I am a pilgrim here on earth; my body can die but not the spirit. To show that he has conquered death, Ghandi predicted his death in the hand of an assassin and promised he will hold no grudge but prayer for the assailant as long as he died in active service. He said, “No one can escape death, we should not be afraid of it. In fact it is a friend who brings deliverance from suffering.”
vii. Individuality lies at the root of all progress.
National independence is only valuable when every citizen constituting the nation can individually govern self. Independence that brings mental freedom is complete, as it makes us free from any yoke. If each individual, the sole creative and the prime mover of all activities in the community is not ignorant, progress is inevitable in the society. I can see similarities in the Indian experience Ghandi talked about and my country, Nigeria. Problems arose and persist till date when people of different nationalities and views were joined together basically for the economic interest of the colonialists. People in the Southern province of Nigeria believe in individual dynamism and self-reliance compared to Northerners who are comparatively static due to their religious outlook. I belong to the group of people who advocate informal education and at least elementary education and artisan-ship for children of school age in Nigeria to reduce the large pool of potential religious fanatics currently wrecking havoc in the country. Formal and informal learning is to a nation what the mind is to the body, and there is no growth without it. I have made up my mind that so long as I live, I must have an inquiring mind and thirst for learning.
I want to contribute more to provision of education that liberates the mind within my community; education that engenders in the individual a sense of personal autonomy and a mastery of self. I want to educate people to see beyond tribal, religious, and other primordial sentiments, but interacting with others based on individual character and competence. For this reason, I am pursuing a degree in Christian Theology so that my formal education and informal education received through IIGL will make me a good life-skill teacher who educates and grows the spirit of students for the survival of the individual and the society.
3. How will these ideas or lessons help you in a practical way, both in your daily personal life and in helping you to create a better world? If so, how?
I have to continually develop the spirit of non-violence and self-sacrifice to influence the people around me through my words, thoughts, and actions. I will be doing harm to humanity by engaging in action that sacrifices the interest of anyone for the good of another. There are chords in every human heart; with love I can strike the right chord that brings out the music. Law of love governs the world, and the force of love that the creator used to bring the universe to life triumphs over hate and darkness. At this time more than ever before the world needs the gospel of non-violence, and I am already one of the converts and preacher of it. I want to have equal love for all mankind without exception, knowing that if a few drops are dirty, the ocean does not become dirty. The whole world belongs to me, and as an individual I can redeem it by demonstrating faith, hope and love.
With prayer and meditation I develop the discipline not to hate anybody other than the evil perpetrated because man and his deeds are two separate things. A wicked deed actually calls for disapprobation but what the doer of the deed needs is pity rather than hatred. It is wiser for me to address the source of what made a person offend me than attacking the offender – what is resisted keeps growing. It is pointless getting angry with someone who does not know what he or she is doing. All humans including me are imperfect and when imperfection is observed in someone in a larger measure than in others, I need not blame him or her. I have to fling aside the sword, offering only the cup of love to friends and opponents to draw them close, and never thinking of permanent enmity between me and anyone, believing that after this life we shall be able to hug ourselves in friendly embrace. The world becomes peaceful by following the Golden Rule – doing to others what I want them to do to me. It is a sin to believe that anyone is inferior to me; commitment of this sin has always been the major source of war everywhere in the world. By casting out the beam from my own eyes I can clearly see to remove the mote from other’s eyes.
One of the ideas that enhance peace in the world is that simplification of our wants brings contentment which is the richest treasure. It is better for me to be more concerned about taking care of the present things I have and making my needs few than thinking too much about what I want tomorrow that God alone can control. I agree with Ghandi that humans and things change but the Divine is permanent. I want to be just an instrument in the hands of Nature, not affected by or attached to results or things that are prone to change. The idea is to do my best according to my conscience and ability and leave the rest for posterity. This is the message I love to use my life to preach to the world.
I can influence the people around me positively and make the world better by refusing to force a person to do something that has not appealed to his or her reasoning and thinking, because any action that is dictated by fear or by coercion of any kind ceases to be moral. I have learned that bad leadership in every area of life in the world thrives as a result of sycophants who flatter leaders with unnecessary compliments that swell their heads. As a light in the world, I want to be a good follower who imitate good deeds of good leaders and one who speak against wrongdoings. As a leader, I want to have followers who reveal my mistakes because the knowledge of my limitations saves me from overrating myself. Meanwhile, death serves as a good reminder for me to contribute to humanity so as to leave the world better than I met it. I want to leave the world laughing when people are crying. I may not be able to please all people, but I must die as a messenger of peace and continually transform my consciousness through meditation and prayer for the world. I believe in the power of an individual, that if I gain spiritually, those around me will not suffer; that if I fail, the whole world fails to that extent.
4. Quotes: Are there brief quotes from the book which really got your attention? If so, please list and comment on them.
“The law of the survival of the fittest is the law for the evolution of the brute, but the law of self – sacrifice is the law of evolution for the man.” – Huxley
The law of self–sacrifice is what we need in our families and our nations for peace to rule the world. God is peace, if we are made in His image, we should be the embodiment of peace unless we have gone far from Him. Under the operation of the brute law of force, the modern world is pressed down with the weight of misery and affliction unless we operate the law of love. Brute force will avail against brute force only when it is proved that darkness can dispel darkness. If nature can make light come out of darkness, then love can emerge from hatred by operating the law of self-sacrifice.
“A love that is based on the goodness of those whom you love is a mercenary affair.”
Mahatma Ghandi
The planets in the universe and their constituents are joined together by gravitational force that can make the planets crumble and make the world cease to exist, if removed. That cohesive force is unconditional love that sustains the world. If God is to base his love on our goodness or mercenary love, humanity will cease to exist.
5. Is there anything in the book that you do not understand or are unclear about, or are there ideas which you disagree with and if so, why?
There is nothing in the book that I did not understand or unclear about, and I disagree with no idea.
6. Did the book contain exercises for the reader to complete? If so, did you complete all the exercises and did you find them helpful?
The book contains no exercises.
7. Was there anything you read in the book that you would like to comment on that was not covered in the previous questions? If so, please comment.
I have nothing else to comment about in the book.
Please rate the following questions on a scale of 1 to 10. Ten is good and one is poor.
A. How interesting was it to read? 9
B. How helpful were the contents? 10
C. How easy was it to understand? 9
D. Would you recommend it to others? 10
E. What is the overall rating you would give it? 9.5
Of Water and the Spirit
Assessment by Ayoade Anthony (Nigeria)
1. What is the main idea that the author is trying to convey in the book?
The book is about a version of reality, taking the reader to the world of Dagara people in West Africa who do not distinguish between reality and imagination or thought and reality. The book reveals information about elders, youths, medicine, healing and the indigenous world of the Dagara tribe which Malidona’s initiation had allowed him to access.
2. What were the seven ideas which were personally most important to you and why? List these seven ideas followed by an explanation after each one as to why it was important to you. Use personal examples from your own life.
i. Seek to understand others before you are understood
People want to be understood, and whatever efforts it takes to do that brings much reward. Every culture is a product of the human spirit and has its own perception of reality which should be understood. Habit of respect demands that one never looks down on things one does not understand, but seek to understand them. The whites who came to Africa did not bother to understand the age-long perceptions of the natives thereby creating a wide gap that makes it difficult for both to work together interdependently. The colonialists did not bother to cooperatively deal with issues and come up with win-win solutions.
The Dagara people were made to experience French colonialism and the culture of the West as a force that used violence to eradicate their traditional life–ways. They made no sense out of the colonialists whose every action seemed to go against natural order of things, creating chaos, death, and destruction, profoundly destabilizing sense of unified community that sustains their tribal life. A few of the natives, like Malidona’s father tried to befriend the white man so as to understand him, but had no means to seek to be understood. For this, Malidona’s father found himself in a dilemma; he lost three children, his wife and almost lost his life. Today, we live in a global community, and the distance between countries gets narrower daily, it is expedient to seek to understand other people’s cultures and appreciate the fact that there are endless versions of reality. For pre-colonial African cultures, there is no difference between the sacred and the secular. The religious, social, and political dimensions of their societies are intricately bound together, believing that their ancestors are sufficient to meet all their needs. However, in Western reality, there is a clear difference between the sacred and the secular. The missionaries wanted to take away by force a culture that has been working for the Africans without showing them the effectiveness of the Christian faith in addressing peculiar challenges of the African environment.
Instead of seeking to understand the Africans, the whites equipped with war machines came to Dagara to wage war against the people. On the other hand the tribesmen equipped with black magic sowed seeds of death in the white men’s camps, not knowing what killed them. One day, the whites decided to call a truce by sending emissaries to the women’s secret hiding place giving them food, medicine, and clothing. Meanwhile, Dagara tradition is that you do not hurt someone unless they hurt you, a war council was therefore ordered which agreed to make peace with the colonialists. Meanwhile, needless deaths would have been averted in both camps with understanding preceding the use of force.
ii. Do not allow the desire for physical satisfaction temper your warriorship
The Dagara people, like all traditional Africans believe that ancestors are spirits, who feed only on their minds and that is why they can do things beyond human comprehension. They believe the weight of undigested food close the mind off from the ability to perceive the surrounding good and bad vibrations. Whoever eats too much, they believe, increases his vulnerability to bad energies and the good taste of food hides the danger it puts the body into. The spiritual ones eat only when necessary, and must learn to control the drives of their bodies so as to be alert and firm.
Sleep is another habit that African spiritualists believe is a dangerous practice no different from eating excessively. Malidona’s grandfather tells him that the body is merely the clothing of the soul and that it is not good to pay too much attention to it, as if it were really us. The most disciplined is the one who leaves the body alone to align itself to the needs of the spirit, such will live the longest. To become strong and vigilant in spirit, Bakye who had died had to instruct his son to eat and sleep only when it is necessary. It is easier to learn spiritually when the stomach is empty, things of the soul are better nurtured and the spirit is put in a state of awareness when the body is not fed. I observed that great spiritual minds like Mahatma Ghandi mentioned the importance of fasting in spiritual development which I also found rewarding.
iii. We cannot give what we don’t have
Malidona was forcefully taken away from his parents by the catholic priests, and his identity was robbed by the education he received. In class, Malidona speaks his mind but usually gets punished by his teachers because the relationship between students and teachers is master-servant. In fact, the high–handedness of one of the teachers led to Malidona’s sudden departure from seminary. The products of master-servant educational process use this mentality when they go into the society. When Malidona was at the mission school, the institution determined what is good for him; the educational process is a slow death of identity which still exists in our schools till date, making people do things right, but not the right things that lead to personal development. It makes people climb the ladder that is laid against a wrong wall.
The kind of education received by Malidona was colonial-based; students are schooled to accept the society designed for them by the colonialists. Malidona’s attempts to challenge the status quo in his essays and works were always challenged by his teachers. I believe education should be taken beyond mere schooling or forcing memorization upon children. Education must engender in the individual a disposition of personal autonomy, responsibility and a mastery of relevant forms of life, thought and action. A good education should be free from indoctrination, but rich in moral training. Lack of this total education had contributed to poor performance of African leaders who have not been able to lead with compassion, justice, and wisdom, a situation that accounts for poverty in many African countries. I have seen the need for me to promote and imbibe education that is rich in all dimensions of human greatness: integrity, interaction, identity, intuition, inquiry, initiative, and imagination. Only products of such education can give something back to the society.
iv. Peace in any place is hinged on respect for societal laws
The laws and customs governing African society in pre-colonial era were religious-based as practiced by the Dagara tribe of West Africa which Malidona described. The people ensured that laws are respected for peace, unity and stability of the society. When Bakye, Malidona’s grandfather died he joined the ancestors but was regarded as living, he keeps playing major roles in the society. Everything that concerns the family, its health and progress are of interest to the ancestors. African traditionalists believe that these ancestors are closer to the Almighty God who is too far away to be concerned about their affairs, that the ancestors and lesser gods are very quick in dispensing justice compared to God who is too merciful. Pre-colonial Africa did not need written constitution other than the unwritten code of conduct guaranteed by the ancestors. Every ceremony was religion-related, and the fear and respect for the gods, the regulators of morality and conduct were palpable due to instant justice they mete out to offenders. It shows that lawless humans today abuse the grace of merciful God. Malidona’s father was not spared for going against the instructions of the ancestors. African tradition believes that political authority was beyond man but an act of God and the spirit, teaching that traditional rulers are representatives of God on earth who are divinely ordained to rule.
Today, the introduction of Christianity and Islam has introduced instability into Africa. In Nigeria, the elites who claim allegiance to these religions fan embers of disunity among different regions of the country for selfish reasons. Religious belief and worship that is supposed to be strictly personal are being mixed with affairs of the state by selfish leaders. Religious radicals capitalize on this to declare war on the country in form of Boko Haram – a sect claiming that Nigerians are not free to hold different religious views apart from their own. Southerners and Christians are not safe in Northern Nigeria, a situation that has negative influence on national development.
v. Never judge based on outward appearance
I have to choose this book to read in order to learn from everybody and everything irrespective of my Christian beliefs. In the word, “non-sense”, there is the word, “sense” – Nothing is absolute, in life there is death and in death there is life. I am part of nature, and I love to participate in a wider understanding of its realities. I have learned the need to be alert to the way in which I look at things, and know at any time the place from which I am looking at them. Great minds know that outward appearance does not usually tell the whole story. Malidona observed the activities of very old men and saw that the feebleness or ugliness of the body does not determine the power and beauty of the soul. I’ve learned that it amounts to pride to look down on anybody and anything, including some traditionalists whose character are better than most religious people, from my experience. I use this awareness to challenge myself to grow in faith.
Looking at things beyond physical appearance promotes the habit of respect and engenders peace which the world needs at the moment. A strange incident was narrated by Malidona whereby a deer was shot by his uncle during a hunting expedition, not knowing that it is a spirit in animal skin. Exchange of magical powers took place between the hunter and the hunted until the former found out that the hunted is more powerful than him. To survive, with humility and respect the hunter surrendered to the hunted.
vi. Spirtuality is more than having mental or religious knowledge
Malidona’s initiation helped him to overcome unconscious resistance and fear hindering his spiritual capabilities. Initiates were made to go through fear to conquer fear and arrive at the quiet and silence that one feels in the absence of fear – it is only then that true transformation really begins to happen. As a Christian, I am a spiritual-being who is supposed to operate at spiritual level to see with the mind and perform signs and wonders. A personal challenge to me is the high level of spiritual consciousness of the Dagara traditionalists and their exemplary habits; it encouraged me to develop my spirituality, quite different from my mental or religious knowledge.
Human experiences no longer create challenges once we successfully reunite with the energy of the universe, just like the rainfall communicates with the earth, and the air communicates with the plants. Nothing can’t search for something – as a human in the universe, I can make something happen by aligning with its energy when I know how to communicate with it. Everything is living, and everything has energy.
The Dagara elders believe Malidona had walked away from spirituality by acquiring western education; to them real education is to understand the invisible. The initiation he went through is meant to inculcate new knowledge into him and understand his identity and purpose of existence which had been lost; and to understand the power and essence of natural elements like water, fire, and earth. Malidona discovered that acquisition of formal education that requires debates, theories and criticism are untenable in indigenous learning. What seems static in Western education is dynamic in indigenous learning, the knowledge that comes from within.
vii. To develop is to have a mind that is open to everything.
A person who wants to grow must be open-minded – a mind willing to see all experiences as useful. Malidona could not initially see the moving things he was supposed to see in the stationary tree due to his closed analytical mind. Malidona’s initiation was meant to awake his imaginative and intuitive ability, to come to grips with that esoteric universe of self: knowing one’s own world as it truly was, not as someone else told one it should be. Self-growth is all about understanding challenges and its purpose, and experiencing transformational extraordinary events with open mind as it happened to Malidona during his initiation rites. After series of failure to see the spirit in the tree he was asked to observe, powerful intention or hunger to succeed was created in his mind to speak passionately to the tree and his dead grandfather such that he finally got his mind connected to the invisible to experience his intention. Malidona’s story is an eye-opener to me as I seek God in prayer – that if I ask, I will receive, and if I knock the door enough, it will be opened – the heart’s earnest and pure desire is always fulfilled.
The initiation is to make the initiates become who they have always been, who they are truly, and who they must be. Malidona went through the process of seeing the superiority of invisible things over visible things, and to see the vanity of life without a purpose. If we don’t know where we come from, we cannot know why we came here and what we came to this place to do, and there is no reason to live if one forgets what one is in the world for. The Dagara culture, through initiation of its youths tried to “install” new, empowering beliefs in them, to take away the illusions or limitations that hold them back from real life so as to contribute to society. The bizarre death of some initiates who could not withstand the rigors of initiation strengthened my commitment to God who gives me better opportunity to have awareness. I have to learn to think outside the established “rules” of common society and rethink everything I knew about life. The world is full of endless layers of reality; there is life in all dimensions – under the earth, on earth and above the earth. To empower Malidona and the initiates, they were made to go underground to see life there, to know that humans are more powerful than they think.
3. How will these ideas or lessons help you in a practical way, both in your daily personal life and in helping you to create a better world? If so, how?
For me to be an agent of peace in this age of religious intolerance and fanaticism, I owe it to myself to learn about the theologies of the religions I had looked down on. An intellectual mind is analytical and prone to ego but spiritual growth needed to serve humanity is enhanced by knowing when it is useful to analyze realities and when it is better to discontinue analysis. Inspiration makes me overcome intellectual analysis of situations for my mind to create my reality once I disallow ego to limit my growth and experience. To serve my purpose in the world, I need not allow my past experiences and influences to close my mind but inquiring new possibilities to expand my references. The ideas I have acquired make me go beyond narrow mindedness to have open mind about the universe, how it works, and how to interact with it to improve myself and others consequently through care and kindness.
I have to remind myself the need to appreciate works of creation – the rain that falls, the dawn of the day, the air I breathe and many other things I used to take for granted, seeing everybody and every situation in a new light. Spirituality opens my eyes to see the crime in performing acts that hurt nature. I have to keep learning, teaching and practicing the laws of nature, and once my relationship with nature is cordial, my interpersonal relationship improves thereby contributing to a peaceful and prosperous world. No one can tell me who I am or how I must live, the knowledge can be found by having peace within me from nature. To avoid the hustle and bustle of daily living and the danger of being lost in it, I have to aspire to understand my true nature and nature itself. I come from nature – I can find my peace and heal my soul by aligning with it and learning from it, listening to natural sounds and its relentless vibrations of love. There are lots of love, bliss and happiness existing in nature – this is my original place until I started losing this divine part of me when my human part started yearning insatiably for ‘things’. By getting myself back to nature, I begin to think less of the rat-race in the world, healing myself and everyone around me after overcoming selfishness and insatiable appetite.
New understanding makes me see beyond empty religiosity to seek a world undergirded by a deep sense of spiritual discernment, to appreciate the power of silence, and practice it beyond religious knowledge to promote peace everywhere. I have seen silence as spiritual expression that preserves meaning while words are human expression that hurts meaning. In silence, meaning is no longer heard, but felt; and feeling is the best hearing – the best instrument for recording meaning. My maturity and wisdom in the world are measured through my ability to harness the power of silence, using it to speak better than words, thereby promoting harmonious relationships. Reality of life and nature speak in silence, this has made me embrace quietness to have inner peace and patience, making people calm and empowered by my presence, and listening to hear more than listening to reply.
Any place is a destination for a person who has no purpose; once I discovered mine, I have to shine the light on people’s paths. I am here for the purpose that I signed up for before I entered the world of flesh. I can see the good moral life of others, irrespective of their religion or status as a source of influence to me. Everybody and everything has unique divine parts, and should be respected, so with an open mind I have to put aside all prejudices to respond to myriads of challenges raised by people who place unnecessary demands on my relationships. To enhance peace and growth everywhere, I have discovered the power of showering love on others in words and deeds. If love is genuinely expressed and received in my divine part, I will do a lot of healing in the world and receive more blessings. In this age of religious intolerance, as a monotheist, I don’t have to look down on a polytheist or atheist but speak the truth in love to everyone.
4. Quotes: Are there any statements which the author made that particularly got your attention? If so, please quote them and comment as to why they were important to you.
“Telling diminishes what is told.”
Some things stay alive proportionally to how much silence there is around them. Meaning doesn’t need words to exist. Words are needed to narrate experiences but the experience is more powerful than the words. The experience is not the words and vice–versa. The closer we get to experience or seeing, the wiser we become.
“The body is a shell; when encased in the shell, there are only a limited number of things that can be done.”
Humans are essentially souls – an immaterial element characterized by thought. This invisible part of man never dies, unlike the body.
“Before it can liberate the sweet part of itself, the flower must rot.”
To be a servant-leader, you have to first die to self for inspiration to thrive. Until the seed dies, it cannot grow. Death is life and life is death.
5. Is there anything in the book that you do not understand or are unclear about, or are there ideas which you disagree with and if so, why?
There is nothing in the book that I did not understand or unclear about, and I disagree with no ideas.
6. Did the book contain exercises for the reader to complete? If so, did you complete all the exercises and did you find them helpful?
The book contains no exercises for the reader to complete.
7. Was there anything you read in the book that you would like to comment on that was not covered in the previous questions? If so, please comment.
I have nothing else to comment about in the book.
Please rate the following questions on a scale of 1 to 10. Ten is good and one is poor.
A. How interesting was it to read? 10
B. How helpful were the contents? 10
C. How easy was it to understand? 10
D. Would you recommend it to others? 10
E. What is the overall rating you would give it? 10
Ghandi – An Autobiography
Assessment by Ayoade Anthony (Nigeria)
1. What is the main idea that the author is trying to convey in the book?
The author wrote the book to educate the coming generations about his life, encompassing his challenges and successes for our learning.
2. What were the seven ideas which were personally most important to you and why? List these seven ideas followed by an explanation after each one as to why it was important to you. Use personal examples from your own life.
i. Religion enhances Self-Realization
Ghandi had fear of ghosts and spirits in him as a child. His formal teachers taught him all sorts of things except the knowledge of his inner power, but got it from a family nurse who suggested, as a remedy for his fear, the repetition of “Ramanama” which remained an infallible remedy for him till death. Ghandi’s interactions with different religion in South Africa and England awakened the religious quests in him and enhanced his self–realization, inculcating in him toleration for all faiths. I agree with him that something is wrong with a person who practices a religion but lacks personal transformation to ways of love, inner peace and habits that makes positive impact in other’s lives. A person who kills another person in the name of religion does not have connection with God. Religion is a form of informal education; it transforms the mind beyond mental intelligence to give emotional and spiritual intelligence. As a young man in England, Ghandi’s understanding of religion as a tool of self-awareness saved him from getting wayward in the face of temptations; not hesitating to mention the power of supplication, worship, prayer as acts more real than eating, drinking, or walking.
Habit of prayer and fasting enhances spirituality. The mind is at the root of all sensuality and humans face limitations as a result of inability to control their sensory organs. Anyone who is devoted to prayer and fasting uses their eyesight to see the glories of God, others use it to see the frivolities around them. Prayer and fasting promotes spiritual well-being and one who is genuinely committed to these acts hears nothing but praises of God, others feast their ears upon ribaldry. Turning point in spiritual growth for Ghandi came when he decided to take the spiritual vow to control his senses in thoughts, words and deeds. He started to devote more time for prayer, to feed his mind with worthy things and keep it in good state, realizing the necessity for restraints more and more daily.
ii. Power of Integrity
Whereas many people try to hide their past, Ghandi’s integrity made him to admit his limitations in his youthful days, as a lesson for others that anyone can be transformed in life. Despite childhood bad practices, his conscience and love for truth made him confess to his father that he stole his brother’s gold. His integrity also reflected in the strict observance of the vow he took with his mother not to eat meat or take alcohol while in England for studies despite all temptations. Whoever seeks truth easily follows the Golden Rule but selfishness turns people blind, deceiving themselves and seeking to deceive the world and God. As a boy, Ghandi got married according to Hindu culture before going to England, but he nearly got married there again if not for his efforts to maintain his integrity.
Ghandi believed that lack of integrity makes a person to lose self-respect, he therefore was hesitant to use his friendship with a colonial officer to influence a case his brother had, believing that everyone is equal before the law, and one should not abuse friendship. He was prevailed upon to meet the officer, but the shock of the insult taught him a bitter lesson to always listen to his heart to maintain his integrity.
Ghandi never agreed with his merchant friends who contend that truth is inconsistent with business. A challenge in the world today comes from people who are economical with the truth, refusing to speak the truth for selfish reasons. Ghandi speaks the truth to everyone irrespective of their position or status – an attitude that is rare to find.
Farewell gifts of silver and gold were given to Ghandi by Natal Indians when he was to leave South Africa, however as one ruled by his conscience, he felt he was being paid for the service rendered to the people. Despite the initial opposition from his wife, he decided to prepare a trust deed for the ornament which was deposited with a bank to be used for the service of the community. As a lawyer Ghandi does not charge extra fees for winning a case in court for his client. Despite the general belief that a lawyer’s profession is a liar’s professions he refused to take up false cases that requires him to coach witnesses. Ghandi proved that it is possible to practice law without compromising the truth, in one instance he admitted an error made in a particular case that had already been awarded to his client. Clients and colleagues know him as a defender of truth, despite practice of apartheid in South Africa, he was able to win people’s affection and respect, showing that integrity pays.
iii. Habit of Prudence
I learned from Ghandi that talking without thinking is an attitude of someone who is not prudent. Ghandi is naturally shy in talking, but he sees it as an opportunity for him to weigh every word he speaks. He never recollected ever having regret for anything he spoke or wrote. Experience taught him that to be quick to hear and slow to speak is part of spiritual discipline of a votary of truth. Ghandi believes that proneness to exaggerate, to suppress or modify the truth is a natural weakness of men, and silence is necessary in order to surmount it. He is a man of few words who is rarely thoughtless in his speech but measures every word. I agree that words of people who are so impatient to talk are based on arguments that do not benefit the world.
Prudence is the ability to preserve one’s strength for bigger battles. Ghandi understands this when he was asked to take off his turban before taking oath as an advocate in the Supreme Court in South Africa. Ghandi had insisted on wearing it in the District Magistrate Court and could have justifiably resisted it in the higher court. However, he could see that his skill as a fighter should not be exhausted in insisting on retaining his turban – it was worthy of a better cause. I learned a lesson on importance of identifying what is important and not important to waste my time or resources on as habit of prudence.
Ghandi believed that without properly kept accounts it is impossible to maintain truth in its pristine purity. As the founding secretary of Natal Indian Congress, he saw it as a public organization, so, he ensured necessary prudence in running it by spending wisely. He gave the organization a sound footing by ensuring that its expenditure is less than income, keeping overhead costs low. Prudence helped the party to provide service for humanity in the face of paucity of funds. Failure of management to keep proper accounts has led to the demise of many organizations, big and small, resulting in loss of jobs and attendant negative social effects. The 2008 global economic meltdown is still fresh in my memory- an ugly incident caused by imprudent fund managers and bankers.
iv. Failure is not the End, but Success in Disguise
After being called to the bar in England, Ghandi still felt empty, he discovered that to study law is one thing but to practice it is another thing. His fear became manifested in India as a defendant when he failed to summon courage in his first appearance in court to cross examine the plaintiff’s witness. The embarrassing incident marked the end of his court appearance in Bombay. He tried to secure teaching job but the principal of the school rejected him, so he decided to go to back to his local down, Rajkot where he set up his own office which cannot be described as successful due to intrigues of local politics. These experiences were meant to prepare him for his journey to South Africa where he found his voice and purpose in life. The situation he found himself in South Africa sharpened his teeth in human rights activism and active politics.
v. Habit of Service
Shortly before leaving South Africa after finishing his assignment, Ghandi stumbled upon a Bill before the Natal House of Legislature which sought to deprive Indians of voting rights. Ghandi saw the passage of the Bill as an attempt to make things extremely difficult for Indians in South Africa, so he agreed to extend his stay in order to fight the cause in the spirit of service to humanity. He facilitated the establishment of the Natal Indian Congress to protect the interest of Indians, and put his knowledge and resources at the disposal of the organization, devoting considerable labor and study to preparation of pamphlets. His writings were widely circulated to outsiders on the general condition of Natal Indians – an activity that resulted in winning the Indians numerous friends in and outside South Africa.
Apart from religion, another way towards self-realization is to be absorbed in service to community or humanity. Ghandi willingly put his resources at the disposal of the people whenever the need arises, whether it is an epidemic facing the country or an individual that needs nursing and care. He provided service with passion and pleasure, with spirit of joy and humility; he believes that service without humility is selfishness. Life of service to the weak and poor is life-threatening but it makes one come face to face with God. Ghandi for example was accused of making slanderous statements in India about the whites in Natal; they were enraged and decided to mob him when he returned to South Africa. His decision not to prosecute any of his assailants made people in South Africa sympathize with his service to the oppressed Indians, and made his work easier. In every adversity, there is a seed of equal or greater benefit, the incident enhanced his image and added to his professional practice.
In his bid to improve the living standard of average poor Indians, he encouraged the setting up of cloth spinning wheels in individual homes to weave hand-spun yarn to make the people of India self–reliant and address poverty. The public works Ghandi started on his own gave him a sense of responsibility that paved his way into the politics of India. Good leadership is about serving the needs of others; as part of his contribution to humanity, he established the non-violent, non-cooperation movement that became a political tool in the hands of oppressed people all over the world to use for emancipation.
vi. Habit of Respect
A labourer named Balasundaram, battered by his white master stood before Ghandi trembling and weeping in his office with broken teeth, head–gear in hand. Ghandi felt humiliated and asked the man to tie up his scarf, unlike others who love being honored this way; he believed the humiliation of another human being is far from being honourable. Great men appreciate what is in a human heart than his or her physical appearance. They treat all people equally irrespective of physical attributes of color, sex, age, position and so on. Ghandi related with the rich and poor, the young and old with equal respect. He believes man and his deed are two distinct things, wasting no time to disapprove a wicked deed but believes the doer of the deed deserves respect or pity as the case may be.
To Ghandi, every creature of God should be respected – to disrespect others is to disrespect self. As Hindu, Ghandi sees no wisdom in a religion that practices discrimination, and on this he used to have disagreement with his wife who is wary of her husband’s attitude of bringing all sorts of people into their house to live. In India, the Hindus do not mix with “untouchable Indians,” but Ghandi, despite the storm it raised broke the age-long rule by admitting “untouchable” family into the Ashram – a community he created for every human to live as one family.
vii. Power of Association
Our life is made or marred by the quality of people we interact with. As a youth in India, Ghandi was almost led astray by a friend who taught him how to smoke and eat meat – a taboo for his Hindu religion. After overcoming this challenge, he became wiser in handling all sorts of people he met in life, not finding it difficult to identify those who could kill his dream of self–realization. I believe it was not by accident that he met some Christian friends in South Africa who whetted his appetite for spiritual awakening. The fundamental religious differences between him and them did not damage their relationships but proved helpful through tolerance, love and truth.
Someone said a person will remain the same in five years except the people he meets and the books he reads. I can deduce that reading books enhances self–development and it is as powerful as associating with great minds. I don’t need to physically see Mahatma Ghandi, Martin Luther King Jr. or Warren Buffet before I can associate with them, once I am able to read their books. I discovered that MLK, for example was influenced by the writings of Ghandi on non-violence protests. Ghandi’s belief in infinite possibilities of universal love and attitude about life was shaped by his association with different religious minds. Meanwhile, wrong association can ruin one’s life. Ghandi had a cook he blindly trusted but was an evil genius who played different tricks in secret. I have learnt as much as Ghandi to find ways of weighing every association to ascertain its usefulness and genuineness always. In his bid to fight the cause of the oppressed Indians he had to develop association with editors of newspapers and highly placed people. He attracted them through his transparent love for truth, justice and other positive values. Immediately a man makes up his mind to achieve something, nature brings resources needed. When Ghandi made up his mind to serve humanity, men and women came to his assistance morally and financially. Ghokale, one of the highly placed politicians in India became Ghandi’s mentor until the former died, introducing him to important people in India who would help him in his public life. I learnt from Ghandi that physical relationship divorced from spiritual is body without soul, after his spiritual awakening he got his soul involved in the relationships he had with everyone. I think that is the secret of quality relationships.
3. How will these ideas or lessons help you in a practical way, both in your daily personal life and in helping you to create a better world? If so, how?
The conviction that morality is the basis of things, and that truth is the substance of all morality is taking ever–growing deep root in me. I believe the power of prayer and fasting promotes my self–restraint and compassion which is good for my soul and spiritual growth needed to overcome temptations and develop virtues to overcome vices. My vices become limited and the society becomes better as I control myself in words, thoughts and deeds. It may be hard and steep but I have to strive for self–purification to become absolutely free from selfish thoughts, words and actions. My failure now to absolutely control self can be frustrating but I am not defeated, my process of growth sustains me and gives me the joy to win privately, and my public victory is inevitable.
Like Ghandi, I believe in the precept, “Hate the sin and not the sinner”. Poison of hatred will not spread in the world if this rule is followed by all. I keep reminding myself that we cannot behave equally, for everyone is not evolved in an equal measure. I have the awareness that we are all created by one and the same creator – all of us have infinite divine powers within us – to slight a single human is to slight those divine powers and thus to harm not only that being but the whole world.
From Ghandi, I learned that honesty is the ability of not concealing my ignorance in the course of my professional work, and willingness to seek the assistance of others who know better than me. Such frankness earns people’s affection and trust – it will serve me in good stead in my effort to provide service in the world. A new sense of service I learned from Ghandi that will make me persevere despite challenges is the knowledge that I cannot carry conviction with everyone about the correctness of my actions. I must always hold myself open to correction, and whenever I discover myself to be wrong I must confess it at all costs and atone for it. I learned that humility puts me in good position to serve humanity, not looking for pecuniary benefits and praises of others. I must be able to love the meanest of creation as myself so as to see the universal and all–pervading Spirit of Truth face to face. As I aspire after this, it becomes imperative for me to serve. I have to develop my power of integrity daily to overcome the temptations of reneging on agreements which had been a source of strife all over the world; the absence of credibility and trust accounts for different challenges in relationships. No matter how explicit the pledge, the rich and the poor, the young and the old, the parent and the child, the wife and the husband turn and twist agreements, for selfish reasons. I have to stand out of the crowd.
4. Quotes: Are there any statements which the author made that particularly got your attention? If so, please quote them and comment as to why they were important to you.
“A devotee of Truth is born to be deceived, but ultimately a deceiver only deceives himself.”
Well-intentioned people have severally accused me of being too trusting, having seen my encounter with financial losses; but faith makes me read in disappointments the merciful providence of God, who sweetens bitterness in the end. We will all receive our rewards based on what we have sown.
“Truth is like a vast tree, which yields more and more fruit, the more you nurture it.”
The deeper the search in the mine of truth, the richer the discovery of the gems buried there. Truth is a virtue, the more we preach and practice it, the more it produces its kind.
5. Is there anything in the book that you do not understand or are unclear about, or are there ideas which you disagree with and if so, why?
I disagree with Ghandi’s decision not to send his children to formal schools. I believe that formal and informal educations complement each other.
6. Did the book contain exercises for the reader to complete? If so, did you complete all the exercises and did you find them helpful?
The book contains no exercises for the reader to complete.
7. Was there anything you read in the book that you would like to comment on that was not covered in the previous questions? If so, please comment.
I have nothing else to comment about in the book.
Please rate the following questions on a scale of 1 to 10. Ten is good and one is poor.
A. How interesting was it to read? 9
B. How helpful were the contents? 10
C. How easy was it to understand? 9
D. Would you recommend it to others? 10
E. What is the overall rating you would give it? 9.5
The Temple of My Familiar
Assessment by Ayoade Anthony (Nigeria)
1. What is the main idea that the author is trying to convey in the book?
The book is a narrative on the workings of the society and effects that social class, gender roles, age, new technologies and political revolutions have on people. The book explores how social structure and culture intersect in primitive and modern era through the life of different characters, including the recurring problems of daily living.
2. What were the seven ideas which were personally most important to you and why? List these seven ideas followed by an explanation after each one as to why it was important to you. Use personal examples from your own life.
i. Religion has always been used to Exploit People
Religious leaders have always used religion to exploit the masses of the people, and women are most vulnerable. In the old country in South America, Zede made different designs with peacock feathers which she sells for living. She made capes and head dresses of great beauty with dexterity for priests who led parades in traditional ceremonies, sometimes working the whole year to make the outfits out of fear and respect for the priests. Although ordinary men were made priests, they soon forgot they were given the privilege. Women were made to serve the priests, but were considered inferior and kept out of the secrets of the religion which the women actually know but are used to exploit them.
ii. We are All One World
Some sufferings are self–imposed as a result of ignorance, as it happened in the rural community Zede grew up. The foods they are supposed to eat are sold to outsiders while the children and the villagers are starved of balanced diet. If the hand suffers the whole body feels it, persistent problems in Zede’s village affected supply of food to the city. Supplements were brought from the city to treat the malnourished people in the village who were encouraged to eat from what they have been selling. Wise nations or individuals cannot isolate themselves or refuse to get involved in the challenges facing people in other parts of the world because we are all one world. The global warming affecting the whole world now is a pointer to this. I learned that I should not shift my responsibility of alleviating the problems of others – what affects the eyes ultimately affects the nose and other parts of the body.
iii. Only Truth Can Set Us Free, Not Religion
Olivia’s narration of the story of her family shows what happens when identity is lost. Her mother Celie was taken to Africa from America at age six by her father who was a missionary. In Africa, the family discovered the limitation of the religion brought to the continent by the whites. The white man, in his role of spiritual guide made the Bible say whatever was necessary to keep his plantations going, and used it as a tool to degrade women and enslave Africans. African traditional religion has its own limitations also – the priests make themselves sole conduit to God, if not at times the actual God. Man in his feeling of insecurity submitted himself to the whims and caprices of the “local” and “imported” priests, the local people feared and trusted and worshipped their priests – as Catholics fear and bow before the pope – the actual receiver of prayers, God, was quite often forgotten. Religion as practiced by most religious leaders today is far from making people know the truth that can set them free and give them self-discovery.
I often remind myself Karl Marx’s words that “Religion is the opium of the masses.” A religion that supports the rich against the poor is far from the truth. Religion that was brought to Africa promoted slave trade, racial discrimination and exploitation of African resources for hundreds of years for the benefit of developed nations. The anomaly may continue until Africans start listening to the voices of their hearts and connect to the wisdom of their souls, and doubt the authenticity of present beliefs with new sense of self.
iv. Learn to Get Over the Past and Live in the Moment
Who I am is not defined by my past or my present. Zede enjoyed every day and every one as they come irrespective of her circumstances. Zede narrated her life- story to Arveyda – the reality of being captured as a child and transported through a ship to America can be borne only by the strong–hearted like her. Zede’s mother who could not bear the shame of being raped by the slave-masters in the presence of her child became sick and died. It is noteworthy that the ugly past did not define Zede’s whole life as she grew up to meaningfully serve her community. People who are stuck in the past stay in the past and everything that happened in it and can’t seem to find a way to become free from it, nor do they want to. Such people remain unhappy throughout their lives. Zede, who lived in the moment acted as if the life she was living is exactly her choice – making peace with who we are and where we are at this moment is important. What life throws at us, good or bad, is meant to reveal our identity and the wonderful and meaningful life we are capable of creating despite everything.
v. Love Yourself with all your Heart
Never depend on anyone for your happiness, learn to create it yourself. Zede preached this attitude with her way of life, allowing nothing to disturb her peace of mind. The happiness of life is made up of so-called little things that people take for granted – a kind look, a heartfelt compliment, and a smile for everyone. Her life was so peaceful in the village that Zede did not realize her family was poor. The fact that in true prosperity there is peace of mind is corroborated by the “gospel according to Shug” in the book: “Helped are those who live in quietness knowing neither brand name nor fad; they shall live everyday as if in eternity, and each moment shall be as full as it is long.”
One can find peace not by changing one’s circumstances in life, but by realizing one’s identity at the deepest level. Fanny grew up without a father, she was born through the childish love her mother had with David while she stayed in Africa. The wrong circumstances of her birth however did not define her identity as she was able to grow up to hold on to her own in life irrespective of her situation. Poverty of the mind is worse than physical poverty. All the things that truly matter, beauty, love, creativity, joy, and inner peace arise from the mind, not the environment. Zede has more peace of mind than people who live in cities. As long as I can see my beauty, my light and my perfection, I can accept the truth that who I am is enough. Other people’s voice is not as important as my own voice; my beliefs are more important than what people say or do. To become free, I only need to be aware of the lies trying to hold me hostage. I have to keep reminding myself that nothing and no one should disturb my peace of mind, choosing to focus only on those things that fill my heart with love and joy.
vi. When we Focus on the Strength of Others, we Easily Overlook their Weaknesesses
Ola made blunders, out of ignorance as testified by one of his daughters, Nzingha but she admitted his fearlessness. Her father fought for the liberation of his country from colonial rule but was weak with women – he had different children from different mothers out of wedlock. Fanny, one of Ola’s daughters grew up with her mother in America while Nzingha was brought up by her mother in their native country in Africa until she was forcefully taken away from her by Ola who had become elite in the city. Despite the shabby treatment of her mother who died lonely in the village, Nzingha later admitted the strengths of his father to forgive his inadequacies. Nzingha appreciated his father’s effort to recognize the bravery of her late mother who fought gallantly in the war of independence of their country. Ola dedicated plays to her, and he at last publicly identified her as wife. The plays he made were critical of government leadership including him, depicting oppression of women by men, sharing the understanding he gained about life. He condemned the set of people who took over control of the country after independence forcing the government to ban his play and subsequently imprisoned and punished him when he refused to comply. Nzingha became very close to her father as she obeyed the “Gospel According to Shug” in the book that says, “Helped are those who forgive, their reward shall be forgetfulness of every evil done to them. It will be in their power, therefore, to envision the new Earth.”
vii. Life is an Endless Struggle
Ola, an intelligent young African had been passionate about his country right from his youthful days. He joined liberation fighters to struggle for independence but realized that removing the whites from power was just the beginning of work to be done to bring prosperity to the people. As a playwright, he used his plays to speak the truth to the leaders and followers in the country. I learned that I need not be afraid to be unique or speak my mind, because that’s what makes me different from everyone else.
Ola’s plays one after the other could not capture the endless suffering of his people; like the layers of an onion, peeling them is smelly and makes one cry. Beyond racism that Ola fought against, after independence his country suffered from stupidity and greed – oppression of women, over-taxation, and violence by the government against the people. As Ola was about to die while rehearsing for another play, he realized that life is an endless struggle. It makes me remember one of the lessons I learned in the autobiography of Martin Luther King that one of the great agonies of life is that we are constantly trying to finish that which cannot be finished.
3. How will these ideas or lessons help you in a practical way, both in your daily personal life and in helping you to create a better world? If so, how?
According to Wallace Wattles, “The very best you can do for the whole world is to make the most of yourself.” Choosing to focus on those things that fill my heart with love, joy and peace is important and giving thanks for everything. If I have learned anything from living in this challenging world, it is that life loves those who are grateful, and then it gives other gifts and blessings. I keep reminding myself now that nothing in this life happens to me, it happens for me. I have received a fair share of disappointments from relationships but none of it I believe is a loss. The wrong ones are teaching me the lessons that prepare me for the right ones; I just have to keep my mind clean and clear for life to work for me, and not against me.
I must see the end from the beginning to help me overcome all limitations in my environment, to become someone who contributes meaningfully to people’s lives. Acknowledging the fact that I can’t help the poor by becoming one of them is an impetus for me to become responsible for my life. To contribute to life I must keep remembering a lesson from the book: “Helped are those who love the entire cosmos rather than their own tiny country, city, or farm, for them will be shown the unbroken web of life and the meaning of infinity.” I remind myself that the innate human spirit is the mother of culture which grants divine qualities to all of us and makes us one in the world. Every culture has its values, norms, beliefs and know-how. Despite our physical differences, all humans irrespective of color have common divine qualities of love, peace, joy and other empowering values that I must respect.
It was Mathew Arnold who said, “Resolve to be thyself; and know that he who finds himself, loses his misery.” I have to be free before I can set others free – I see religion as something that ought to make me return to my soul to discover my real self and make others see freedom, not bondage. I have to live according to another pertinent lesson from the “Gospel According to Shug” in the book: “Helped are those who are content to be themselves; they will never lack mystery in their lives and the joys of self–discovery will be constant.”
4. Quotes: Are there any statements which the author made that particularly got your attention? If so, please quote them and comment as to why they were important to you?
I have no brief quote in the book to comment on.
5. Is there anything in the book that you do not understand or are unclear about, or are there ideas which you disagree with and if so, why?
There is nothing that I did not understand in the book or ideas I disagree with.
6. Did the book contain exercises for the reader to complete? If so, did you complete all the exercises and did you find them helpful?
The book contains no exercises for the reader to complete.
7. Was there anything you read in the book that you would like to comment on that was not covered in the previous questions? If so, please comment.
I have nothing else to comment about in the book.
Please rate the following questions on a scale of 1 to 10. Ten is good and one is poor.
A. How interesting was it to read? 9
B. How helpful were the contents? 10
C. How easy was it to understand? 9
D. Would you recommend it to others? 10
E. What is the overall rating you would give it? 9.5
Journey of Souls
Assessment by Ayoade Anthony (Nigeria)
1. What is the main idea that the author is trying to convey in the book?
The book narrated the experiences of people in trance which afforded them the opportunity to make instant contact with the inner self, to see their immortality for a new depth of self–understanding and empowerment to emerge. Conscious knowledge of our soul life in the spirit world while on Earth gives a stronger sense of direction and energy to our lives. The book brings people closer to the higher creative power available within them; to have healing and combat the fear of death by offering people understanding about the nature of their souls and their spiritual or real home.
2. What were the seven ideas which were personally most important to you and why? List these seven ideas followed by an explanation after each one as to why it was important to you. Use personal examples from your own life.
i. We are divine but imperfect beings existing in two worlds.
I believe one of the reasons why humans live below their potential is ignorance of who we really are, where we come from, and why we are here. Opening the door to an eternal world of souls through this book makes me see beyond my life on earth, giving me better understanding of spirituality and the future. There is order and purpose in the universe emanating from a higher consciousness. I learned about who I am and where I come from: my major challenge, like other humans is to maintain connection with my spirit-soul: to understand and appreciate my permanent identity. The problem of evil in the world had been an issue in Theology for centuries creating many unbelievers in the Supreme Being, but I believe in the school of thought that suffering exists to motivate us to become good: It is when we see what is bad that we can appreciate what is good. I agree that we live in an imperfect world by design. It is our destiny to move back and forth between two worlds through space and time while we learn to master ourselves and acquire knowledge, trusting in the process with endurance. Self–actualization of the soul identity is the purpose of life in spirit world and on earth. Growth cannot be uniform due to differences human character, but a self actualized soul allows for integration with others in life by showing integrity and ethical conduct, such advancing souls are adaptable to change believing that love and trust don’t necessarily bring hurt on Earth.
ii. Compassion nourishes the Soul
It is interesting to note that soul energy display human characteristics of kindness. A person who is compassionate while on earth becomes a friendly soul entity in the spirit world serving as personal guide or soul mates for new arrivals in the spirit world to provide loving encouragements. It is good to be aware of the existence of displaced souls: those souls whose lives on earth while in human bodies have something to do with criminal abnormalities. After death, they dwell in a no man’s land between the lower astral planes of earth and the spirit world. The souls who have been involved with evil acts while living in the body definitely lacked compassion and do not have direct passage back to the spirit world and their original home after death. This is a worthy lesson for me on the essence of showing acts of kindness in the world; compassion is a major characteristic of souls in the spirit world.
iii. We are the Masters of our Destiny
In preparing for the next life on earth in the spirit world, the soul is evaluated based on past deeds to ascertain best course of future endeavors on earth, where to be born and who shall give support in the next life for the best opportunity to work on the host body’s goals. Souls have the freedom to choose when, where, and who they want to be in their physical lives on earth which presents direct experience and knowledge to grow for a soul. Souls deliberately choose particular ways to be born or die, act of God is not involved; it is a matter of our choices. I have to separate my mistakes or challenges I face from “acts of God.”
One of the fundamental beliefs of African philosophy is that humans have chosen all that happens to them on earth in the Spirit world. The cases in the book, “Journey of Souls” authenticate the belief that souls in spirit world coming to Earth for incarnation preview their next life at the Ring of Destiny to make decisions. Here, maturity of the soul making the choices comes to play. Maturity depends on the quality of previous lives but the consequences for any mistake in choices have to be accepted if the life is not well handled on Earth. I learned that my unconscious mind holds the key to spiritual memories of my life plan seen at the Ring of Destiny before my departure to Earth. The step to take to have a headway when I am confused about life is in my inner self if I can quietly sit down to compare where I have been to where I want to go in future; the discovery depends on my spiritual power or maturity. The price I pay for my misdeeds and the rewards received for good conducts revolve around the laws of karma. Bodies can change but past memories don’t die; to escape the problem of dealing with same thing over and over again in different lives on Earth, I have to make the best use of my present life.
iv. Super-conscious identity of the soul houses our continuous memory and goals.
Our coming to earth is arranged by more advanced souls in the spirit world who make sure we are born into particular families to assist us in living the life purposed for us. Some refused to follow the roadmap they were given but get distracted one way or the other. In the book, “Journey of Souls,” Hester, a young woman abandoned family values to become something else, refusing to listen to her original soul that placed thoughts of temperance, moderation, responsibility, and love in her mind. She became dissatisfied with her life as a successful real estate broker as being materialistic and unfulfilled. She complains of headaches on the right side of her head above her ear. Hypnosis revealed that she had experienced a recent series of male lives, culminating with a life cut short by suicide as a prosecuting attorney in the state of Oklahoma during the 1880’s. Her former life still hunts her – starting with desire to make a difference for the people of Earth but missing the opportunities by becoming a crooked lawyer who shot himself in the head. I learned that the absence of right values is a major source of unfulfilled destinies of people in the world – it has nothing to do with gender or other physical attributes. Hester’s life was still empty and unfulfilled despite choosing the body of a woman in her present life because her destructive values have not changed: selfishness and love of money.
v. Every human has a soul guide
African Traditional Religion believes one’s ancestors can assume a personal-god relationship to living family members to serve as guardian angels for divine protection during crisis: In visions and dreams, these gods can assist or warn an individual.
My faith makes me know that angels do appear to people who have personal relationships with God to give messages. It is good to know that through spiritual acts of prayer and fasting, I can call on God to send angels whose direct responsibility is to guide me. I now know further that angels remain with each human over thousands of earth years to assist in their trials before, during, and after countless lives. I learned it is immature on my part to blame God for what is not working in my life – guides had been assigned to me in the spirit world based on my soul identity – I only have to get aware and connected. It is my duty to perform better as I play my life and stop feeling sorry for myself but aspiring to use all my abilities and be disciplined.
I can signal to get the attention or help of my soul guide by calming my mind and focusing attention away from my immediate surroundings through silence – reaching inward to fasten on the guide’s inner voice. The energy of my directed thought must override my human emotions; otherwise it is hard to get signals of guides. I also have the consciousness of the fact that spiritual teachers or guides do make physical in-life contact as a trusted friend; child or relative in some parts of one’s challenging lives. It made me note that a particular child or certain people are more caring and concerned than others when help is needed – such special people manifesting uncommon care and love are spiritual guides whose messages should not be missed so as to take full advantage of life’s opportunities.
vi. Accept people for who they are
When emotional disturbances are allowed to thrive in the mind, it causes addictive behavior, inhibiting soul development and holding the soul in bondage. To relate well with people, I understand that people engage in negative behavior due to addiction. Their soul development had been arrested and the story continues until the hidden real identity in the subconscious causing it is revealed. Controlling and judging such people make matters worse since their behavior goes beyond what is seen on the surface – all sorts of childhood and other experiences dating back to previous lives do account for their bad behavior. Everything good or bad in our past and present lives on earth is recorded in our deep-seated memory in the subconscious.
There is spiritual purpose behind my being joined in life with the souls of parents, siblings, spouse and friends and their good or bad actions – there is karmic purpose for receiving pain or pleasure from people. Certain challenges on Earth that I faced from certain relationships are meant to enhance my soul identity. Once I overcome such trials, I won’t have to repeat in future lives on Earth the lessons I had successfully learned. To grow spiritually, I have to stop reacting negatively to issues or blame anyone for my situation. The lesson I must learn from human relationships is accepting people for who they are without expecting my happiness to be totally dependent upon anyone. Disappointment in marriage and relationships are karmic lessons and deliberate tests in life meant to expand my consciousness. To improve my relationships with people, I have to firstly transform my two deepest, most innate relationships: that between my present and my eternity, and that between my body and my soul. This makes me see the end from the beginning more clearly and be able to manage all sorts of relationship.
vii. As souls we choose our bodies for a reason
The soul is more important than the body because it is limitless. The body a soul chooses to dwell on Earth will always have limitations regardless of the soul level; being human, mistakes are bound to be made. Studies in USA show that 90% of males and females were not satisfied with the physical characteristics of their bodies. People suffer from the power of conscious amnesia. Much unhappiness is created by society stereotyping an ideal appearance. Once I see myself basically as a soul in human body, my type of body cannot prevent me from achieving satisfying life. The accident I had that gave me scars has a purpose. My soul had chosen my body for a reason but I forgot on Earth due to conscious amnesia. I learned from a particular case in the book where a soul had to wait 1,000 years to choose a body that will be crippled in order to gain intellectual concentration. In the spirit world there is nothing like accident concerning what happens on earth – it was supposed to happen for particular reasons. Soul–mind must have agreed with body- mind of a person before anything happened. A soul that has a strong body in this life can decide to have a fragile body in another life. By surviving different challenges of being a rich man and a beggar, or a strong man and a fragile man in different lives, the soul identity is strengthened.
3. How will these ideas or lessons help you in a practical way, both in your daily personal life and in helping you to create a better world? If so, how?
I have to remember what my religious tradition has taught me from cradle – the issue of being sent to heaven or hell for good and bad deeds – each soul is held accountable for its conduct in the body it occupies. The key to growth is the understanding that I need the courage to make necessary changes whenever I acted wrongly. Souls are created innocent, but their nature can be contaminated – it is a fact that the Earth is populated by high percentage of lower level souls. I have to join others who have the consciousness to bring awareness to more people in a world beset by so much misunderstanding, negativity and violence. It happens that children who have been damaged by physical and emotional abuse commit premeditated acts of atrocity without feelings of remorse, thereby putting the future of the world in danger.
I am ready to possess more understanding of the universal life plan and know more about esoteric ideas of purpose and creation. I have decided not to leave my original good intentions and fall into trap of self–gratification which limits spiritual growth. I have to accept others for who they are, to conquer negative traits, to recognize my faults, and have the courage to make constant adjustments in my life. It is my desire to develop ability to cope with life on earth and become advanced soul like Martin Luther King – one of the few incarnated guides who have mastered the fundamental issues most of us wrestle with daily. The mark of an advanced spirit is one who radiates kindness, and understanding towards others – I want my fulfillment to come from improving the lives of other people. I have learned so much from the attributes of spiritual teachers in the spirit world who are compassionate and non-judgmental, not restraining learners by imposing their values on them. They accept their students for who they are – as individuals with the right to make their own mistakes. The spiritual guides have taught me how to exercise authority as a parent, boss and teacher – not to be possessive nor pose a threat to my followers.
I can take my cue from the Spirit world where souls are involved in intimate sharing and support on an everlasting basis, whereas the Earth is filled with uncertainty and fear brought about by competing humans whose aggression is fueled by ignorance of their real identity as souls. Through synergy with my soul, I can allow my sense of meaning, morality and understanding to override my human senses and emotions. My relationships with people while on earth extend to the spirit world when I die since all of us are basically souls – this has made me see racism, nepotism, and sectarianism as ideas born out of ignorance. I can address my challenges more effectively since I am now aware that past life memories may spill over into contemporary problems, but proper soul-searching through meditation and prayer can reveal things hindering my goals. I have the understanding that manifestation of negative emotions is an indication that I am not following my life- purpose and once I go into my soul, I am able to find how to live wisely, to love well, and serve greatly. By serving greatly here, my soul can return to the spirit world with joy, as an advanced soul that had been able to overcome negativity.
4. Quotes: Are there any statements which the author made that particularly got your attention? If so, please quote them and comment as to why they were important to you.
“Enlightenment is seeing the absolute soul ego reflected in the relative human ego and acting through it during life.”
To have enlightenment is to seek personal truths. I have to look beyond the demands of human ego and get into the superior absolute soul ego, then I will avoid being obsessed by my physical body.
ii. “Even as victims, we are beneficiaries.”
Without addressing and overcoming pain we can never really connect with who we are and build on that – the more pain and adversity come to us, the more the opportunity to expand our potential. Transformation that takes place in our lives in the process of moving from imperfection to perfection gives us purpose as long as we trust the process, which usually involve pain. We can only appreciate food if we have known hunger, and only someone who had been cold can understand the blessings of warmth: one has to be a child to see the value of a parent. How we stand up to challenges marks our progress in life, so, one of the most important lessons is to learn to just let go of the past.
“Every human journey on Earth is destined by God in the spirit world.”
We have prime assignment in the life we spend on Earth but the spirit world is the center for evaluation and analysis before the journey began. A child might be born to a particular family to provide succor for it or hold the family together and give them a course to follow.
5. Is there anything in the book that you do not understand or are unclear about, or are there ideas which you disagree with and if so, why?
There is nothing that I did not understand in the book or ideas I disagree with.
6. Did the book contain exercises for the reader to complete? If so, did you complete all the exercises and did you find them helpful?
The book contains no exercises for the reader to complete.
7. Was there anything you read in the book that you would like to comment on that was not covered in the previous questions? If so, please comment.
I have nothing else to comment about in the book.
Please rate the following questions on a scale of 1 to 10. Ten is good and one is poor.
A. How interesting was it to read? 9
B. How helpful were the contents? 10
C. How easy was it to understand? 9
D. Would you recommend it to others? 10
E. What is the overall rating you would give it? 9.5
Meditation as Medicine
Assessment by Ayoade Anthony (Nigeria)
1. What is the main idea that the author is trying to convey in the book?
The book serves as guide to tapping into the innate healing power we all have, revealing the role of Medical Meditation in developing a high level of physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual health. The spirit, a gift from God that links us to divinity itself is immortal. It can be battered but can be revived through Medical Meditation which spark the spirit and unite the energies of the body, mind and spirit to exert powers of esoteric healing.
2. What were the seven ideas which were personally most important to you and why? List these seven ideas followed by an explanation after each one as to why it was important to you. Use personal examples from your own life.
i. Vibration is integral to biological functions
Words can heal if spoken in the language of the hearer. Certain words and sounds have vibrations that make various parts of the human body resonate with specific sound frequencies. It changes the secretions of the endocrine system and can therefore be used therapeutically.
Pythagoras stated that stone is a frozen music to show that everything in the universe vibrates. He called certain chants, rhythms; and melodies “musical medicine” using specific sounds to perform healing. In the human body, the vibrations we create through speaking and chanting have powerful effects on certain glands to increase their functions. Mantras accompanying meditation have special meaning which penetrate the psyche, creating tremendous psychoactive healing power. Particular mantras can be chanted that makes the tongue strike the eighty four reflex points to stimulate immunity of the body. For example, the mantra, “Ong Namo, Guru Dev Namo” meaning “I bow before my highest self” evokes healing power just as no medical doctor knows why aspirin stops pain. The vibration-power within the words in mantra-chanting changes the DNA of the body at the sub-atomic level – coupled with the associated exercises of the body, energetic blocks and negative mental and emotional limitations are removed.
ii. Chakras are our ethereal centers of consciousness and communication
There are seven interconnected whirling vortexes of ethereal energy vertically aligned along the spine and head, plus the aura of ethereal energy surrounding the entire body making up eight chakras. Each chakra holds ethereal energy and transfers it to other chakras and specific areas of physical body through the nerves and endocrine glands. The Chakras system permeate the realms of body, mind, and spirit making possible the complete unity of the three elements when ethereal energy are transmitted from lower first to third chakras to the higher chakras. I learned that it is important for me to have a foundation of strong lower chakras on which I can build the spiritual higher chakras. All the chakras work together; hence a blockage of energy in any of them can cause problems elsewhere.
The first chakra is the seat of survival instincts, the primary repository of our unconscious urges. This chakra gives man the desire to adapt things to suit his own purpose alone. Meanwhile, our wants are insatiable therefore our energy often becomes stuck in the first chakra, getting fixated on mere biological survival, at the expense of spiritual survival. The second chakra characterized by water element extends from the top of the pelvic bone to the navel, it has the power to create and recreate, to give and to receive. Strong second chakra energies facilitates strong relationships, compassion for others, and creativity making one feel fulfilled if one’s creative work is appreciated by others. The third chakra or the solar plexus chakra, located around the navel governs the energies of the stomach, intestines, liver and pancreas. It ensures nutritive ethereal energy is digested and dispersed to various non- physical energy conduits throughout the body. It is associated with the element of fire which helps burn food energy and radiate ethereal energy to the rest of the body. It is responsible for ‘fire in the belly’ we have in achieving our goals. It is revealing that if energy becomes trapped in the third chakra, one becomes voracious for power.
iii. Compassion clears the path of the soul leading to heaven on earth
Beyond the passion that the lower chakras bestow, developing energetic higher chakras from the fourth to the eighth ultimately leads to heaven on earth. The fourth chakra or the heart chakra is located where the heart lies and bestows the heart intelligence and compassion. The heart, associated with the element of air contains molecules of emotion and molecules of information known as peptides mainly from the brain, which makes the heart think to some degree about how fast it is supposed to breathe.
The fifth chakra or throat chakra is the voice of truth. Gurucharan said, “The power of the fifth chakra is to have your tongue and the tongue of God be the same.” For this to occur, my voice must speak only the truth that empowers the fifth chakra. The sixth chakra or third eye chakra is the path of soul that is linked to intuition; it knows no pain, making us attain freedom from all worldly limitations that limit healing. It enhances thinking beyond the five senses to make decisions from the soul devoid of narrow, ego-based concerns about survival and status. Sixth chakra helps to experience oneness, or the merging of all things, to achieve ultimate human consciousness engendering service to others, happiness and optimal health.
Energizing the seventh and eight chakras makes one reach the destination of heaven on earth. Medical Meditation exercises make the body produce the right hormones needed to heal the body by awakening hidden memories of the soul to reveal spiritual self. All healing begins with the mind, the servant of the spirit which consist the rational mind, the emotional mind, and the intuitive mind. Spirituality is attained by feeling with the mind which knows the soul and unites the body and the spirit. Strong seventh and eight chakras carry us to the realm of the spirit, the only aspect of us that is truly immortal. The seventh chakra or the spirit center of the body is focused on the universal, cosmic energy that enters and exits the body, through the top of the head. It ultimately controls the body, mind, and spirit through the mind-activation and opens door to access cosmic energy that can be utilized for healing. Human capacity for boundlessness is contained in the seventh chakra which energizes and enhances the eighth chakra, the most ethereal and mysterious chakra known as aura that surrounds the body. The aura is composed of the bioelectrical energy that exists in all living creatures; it shields and encloses all the other seven chakras.
iv. Power of breathing
Ability to control breath is the doorway to consciousness. As a person struggles to become more conscious, wondrous things occur. What creates a healthy body is the ability to become conscious of the simple actions, like breathing that most people perform unconsciously.
Human is supposed to breathe in oxygen and “prana,” the universal life force. If there is no breath, there is no life. As “prana” enters the body, it awakens human healing energy. Kundalini yoga exercises ensure the circulation of the energy in the body and its eventual return to the cosmos. I have learned how to inhale abundant amount of prana deeply through my nose, holding my breath for at least one minute, channeling it to the third eye point and transferring it to upper chakras. I find the One Minute Breathe quite effective in giving inner strength before performing certain activities. Taking deep, controlled, rhythmic breathing calms my mind and helps in overcoming fear, anger and pain.
Every cell in the body depends on oxygen. When apana and prana are mixed using the right postures, movements and breathing techniques, a new force of neutral energy that induces calmness and helps the mind to be neutral, non judgmental, and serene is produced. This neutral mind is the sacred space where all healing occurs.
v. Postures and movements can forge energy into a healing force
The postures of kundalini yoga awaken and channel internal energy lying inside us, but require discipline whose exercise builds true personal power to perform supernatural feats. The eye-focus and other postures in Medical Meditations stimulate the pituitary gland to coax the body out of old ways of moving and holding itself. Yoga postures and movements help in flexibility and balance. The two most important aspects of healing. Flexibility, particularly of the spine is important for proper nerve functions. Experts believe flexibility of body can positively affect flexibility of mind pertaining to human’s physical and spiritual relationships.
Developing physical flexibility helps to develop flexibility in all aspects of life. When people are flexible, they are able to make the continual series of adjustments that restores balance; otherwise their lifestyle is dominated by imbalanced behaviors presenting many risk factors for disease. I can see that lack of discipline that makes humans not to do body exercises is what makes them eat too much, work too much, or worry too much, making them vulnerable to illness.
Peptides are normally produced by humans in the brain and other nodal points of the body. The chemical triggers the action of molecules of emotions and molecules of information which enables the body and brain to speak the same language. Kundalini yoga postures and movements ensure the balance of quality and quantity of peptides produced in the body, especially when combined with breath control. That is, movements of certain body parts affect my neurochemistry which affects my emotions, and my emotions affect my spirit, my single most potent healing force. It is remarkable that I can always enjoy positive emotions and improve the function of my brain through yoga postures and movements.
vi. The universe has tides and rhythms
The universe has regular repeated pattern of changes of sounds and seasons that spiritually-discerned people can hear and exploit. Scientists who have been to the space have confirmed that their instruments had been able to record primordial sounds there. Every natural thing in the universe makes sounds at special frequencies which esoteric healers have been able to use to heal. Breathing, for example has rhythms or vibrations that can be used to interlock finite magnetic field with infinite magnetic field of the universe to bring healing. It is left for each of us to know how to key to the workings of the universe to understand the benefits of nature and the secret of living. I agree that everything in universe has a purpose, nothing in nature lives for itself, but exists to serve others: Trees don’t eat their own fruits, and the sun doesn’t shine for itself.
By being attentive, every human can hear natural sounds when the mind is quiet and there is no noise to attenuate it. Dr. Robert Gass said, “Sound is a remarkable bridge between spirit and matter”. Special sounds resonating and harmonizing with the innate vibrations of the universe give specific physiological effects and increase the brain’s ability to operate at a higher level, making intuition and perception possible. I listen to binaural sounds to align myself with the frequency of the universe to shut off ego, and change mind from darkness to light, propelling me toward positive choices. Knowing that words are vibrations that can be made to resonate with the universe strengthens my belief in the power of prayer and singing to receive the things I want in life. The awesomeness of God is revealed more to me in the way He had created the universe by making all matter to have rhythms and vibrations.
vii. The body and mind are one
Mind is not only in the brain, it functions in other parts of the body through information molecules or chemicals of thoughts and emotion which affect the way we think and how we feel. Thought can influence the physical condition of human beings and all matter. The body has nodal points saturated with receptors where huge amounts of information come together and are processed. The nodal points decide what messages to be sent to the brain, for further processing and what to ignore. The nodal points have their own type of memory, that is, each of them has a mind of its own, implying that the body and mind are one: The mind heals the body and the body heals the mind.
The physical existence of thought and memory throughout the body is the reason why the physical activities of Medical Meditation alter thought patterns and emotion. It means that the immune system of the body can actually learn. The brain can speak to the nodal points of the immune system, in a “language” that both understand. The mind, including our many nodal point mini–minds has the power to heal. By doing Medical Meditation, I create the mix of molecules of information for healing that unite my body, mind and spirit to facilitate miraculous healing in me, and others as well, leading to true and lasting happiness. Humans have no vision, passion or compassion when the body, mind, and spirit are not working together in alignment, leading to absence of deeper spiritual experiences.
Meditation, and strong positive religious feelings and frequent prayer can give my mind the power to heal, because these spiritual activities heighten the receptivity of the brain to perceptions that go unnoticed by the logical brain. The brain now functioning at its highest level serves as antenna to receive the messages of the cosmos. Someone I was praying for during a particular prayer session had such elevated intuition; he walked to my place to tell me what I was doing despite the fact that we were several meters apart. I see meditation as an activity that makes me unite my body and mind, it develops my mind to have ability to surrender or let go of a specific outcome, thereby facilitating effective prayer filled with gratitude.
3. How will these ideas or lessons help you in a practical way, both in your daily personal life and in helping you to create a better world? If so, how?
Medical Meditation amplify the energy residing in my chakras , making it flow freely from lower to higher chakras to overcome physical and spiritual challenges. I have learned that failure to give and receive cosmic energies makes humans become bogged down with daily struggle for survival believing that life is finite, and lonely. I must not allow my energy to get stuck in the first chakra, the seat of survival characterized by earth element where humans manifest sense of attachment to the material world that hinders them from accepting any fate and still be happy. The masses of people, irrespective of status manifest negative emotions such as greed, retaliation, jealousy, and revenge because energy cannot flow in and out of their chakra. However, my knowledge of the power of chakras has enabled me to keep practicing first chakra Medical Meditation exercises and recommend it to others to eliminate bad thoughts and habits to be able to merge self with others.
Every day, I do my fourth chakra Medical Meditation exercises to make energy to flow in my heart chakra, enabling me to love others as much as I love myself, and seek to understand others first. It makes me see life beyond physical, personal selfhood, endowing more peace and overcoming all fears bedeviling others who are stuck in the seat of survival. I had experienced hurts from people who tried to take advantage of my compassion which had brought regrets, but it is good to know that regular meditation facilitates intuition needed to bring everything under control.
I do fifth chakra Medical Meditations to develop humility, making it easy for me to be quick to hear and slow to speak. It makes me speak the truth and avoid slandering and unfair judging of others, thereby aligning me with the power of the universe. God is truth. By speaking truth, my prayers have power to resonate with the universal vibrations to shape the world around me and overcome my physical and spiritual obstacles.
By responding to the real world with my soul, I am able to see beyond the obvious and stand the test of time on the long run. My sixth chakra, when it is balanced, opens the door to the path of the soul for me to attain freedom from all worldly limitations hindering healing, joy, prosperity and wisdom. I do my Medical Meditations daily to open my higher chakras to create inner harmony and peace of mind, leading to eternal connectedness enabling the merging of heaven and earth to become a river that never struggles to flow. My aura or divine spirit consisting of my energies and the energies of the universe come from the creator and go to the creator. The positive auras I exhibit allow me to send positive healing energy in form of prayer to other people and make me connect well with my environment to contribute.
4. Quotes: Are there any statements which the author made that particularly got your attention? If so, please quote them and comment as to why they were important to you.
“Mind doesn’t dominate body, it becomes body; body and minds are one.”
Thought can exist as a physical entity. Molecules of information, therefore memory partly exist as a solid, physical entity rather than just as a pattern of electrical firing of neurons. This accounted for the existence of instincts in memory and the inborn fear humans have for certain things. Thought takes place not only in the mind but also in the body, so they are one.
5. Is there anything in the book that you do not understand or are unclear about, or are there ideas which you disagree with and if so, why?
There is nothing that I did not understand in the book or ideas I disagree with.
6. Did the book contain exercises for the reader to complete? If so, did you complete all the exercises and did you find them helpful?
The book contains different Medical Meditation exercises for the reader to do. All the physical exercises are very helpful.
7. Was there anything you read in the book that you would like to comment on that was not covered in the previous questions? If so, please comment.
I have nothing else to comment about in the book.
Please rate the following questions on a scale of 1 to 10. Ten is good and one is poor.
A. How interesting was it to read? 9
B. How helpful were the contents? 10
C. How easy was it to understand? 9
D. Would you recommend it to others? 10
E. What is the overall rating you would give it? 9.5
The Celestine Vision
Assessment by Ayoade Anthony (Nigeria)
1. What is the main idea that the author is trying to convey in the book?
The book helps in searching for a deeper philosophical meaning of life, to expand our consciousness and explore our unique missions on this planet. It makes the readers realize the hidden energies of their individual life dramas and how to overcome them. It gives steps on how to evolve consciously through the principles of synchronicity, connection, and purpose.
2. What were the seven ideas which were personally most important to you and why? List these seven ideas followed by an explanation after each one as to why it was important to you. Use personal examples from your own life.
i. Mechanistic worldview discounts spiritual experiences as illusion
Over-reliance on technological advancements has dulled our spiritual consciousness and intuitive capabilities, making us more materialistic, thereby losing our values of respect and gratitude for human limitlessness in the process. We have so much feeling of attachment to the physical than the spiritual, not seeing the divinity in the natural things surrounding us. We relate with fellow humans as if they are things; our failure to see the spirit inside us hinders us from seeing it in others. No one seems to manifest his or her conscience in their actions, and the society suffers for it as we can see. For materialistic advantage, people go to any length to dominate others resulting in our spiritual weakness.
As we begin to have spiritual experiences, we become a field of energy of love, of light, all interacting and influencing each other. To become spiritual aware, ego fueled by mechanistic worldview must take a backseat to the higher self and stop resisting the act of letting-go so as to taste the transcendent experience. In order to develop their independent ego, humans have pulled away from their intuitive source and tried to run their lives totally by themselves. When we are not connected to the divine source, we look for security outside ourselves in some form of ego gratification and energy-stealing control dramas.
I had learned to replace old materialistic world view with a new understanding that there is actually no material. The human body itself are atoms fading away into mere patterns of energy, vibratory waves shifting form and reconstituting themselves in amazing ways. I use prayer and meditation to quiet my ego and expand my inner opening to the divine, realizing that my life here on earth is all about becoming more aware of my spiritual nature.
ii. The universe is responsive to give endless possibilities
I have daily awareness that I live in a mysterious, energy dynamic universe that responds to my intentions and beliefs. Philosophers over the years have come up with different theories about the universe and the Creator including the cosmological theory which states that everything has a cause and there is a first cause, who is the Creator. The universe is dynamic just as Albert Einstein proved that all matter is actually energy including humans. Failure to react appropriately towards the responsive universe leads to unfulfilled lives on the part of humans. Today humans can understand the power of words and thoughts and their effect on prayer and intention from the findings of Quantum physics, leaving behind the mechanistic worldview of Newtonian age. Each generation, to whatever degree it has imbibed spiritual truth, expands and evolves the worldview of the previous one.
As James Redfield stated: “We are intimately connected with the universe and with each other, and our influence on our world with our thoughts is more powerful than anyone ever dreamed.” I need to hold good intentions always because it has effects on other people’s bodies, their minds and the shape of events in the world. Bell’s theorem states that once connected, atomic particles or entities are always connected – this applies as well to our thoughts. This is the reason why I can pray for someone very far away and get answered.
Humans have the capacity that transcends the limits of space and time to receive information about the universe with their minds. It makes me remember the man who predicted successfully the winner, the exact scores and the time the winning goal will be scored in the 2014 Football World Cup final in Brazil. I believe God has given humans the power needed to make the universe respond to give us endless possibilities, but we have not been able to use it fully. This idea is personally important to me as it relates to the power of praying with intentions for the will of God to be done. Sense of connectedness with the divine as the only source of supply is vital and should be continuous; it makes praying for something longer has better effect than praying for it less. I realize that the responsive universe is the reason why prayers are answered through faith. It is important for me to integrate into my life the knowledge that I live in an intelligent, responsive, energy–filled universe, where our assumptions radiate to influence one another.
iii. Control dramas lead to energy struggle
Everyone has a unique set of assumptions and style of interaction that James Redfield, in his book, “The Celestine Vision” referred to as “control dramas.” The dramas range from very passive to very aggressive.
“The poor me” drama shows the victim strategy. He does not compete for energy directly but seem to win attention through the manipulation of sympathy. He drains energy from the other person by making them feel guilty of not sympathizing with him. We can deal with this category of people by not allowing them to dictate to us situations when we should feel guilty.
“The Aloof” drama is a slightly less passive control drama. Such people create a vague and mysterious aura around themselves, forcing others to dissipate energy by digging for information about them. The Aloof strategy gain energy from others by finding a way to be listened to. The Aloof person believes the world is full of people who cannot be trusted with intimate information. The interrogator wants everyone to dwell in his own world by criticizing the actions of others, to obtain energy. The most aggressive control drama is the intimidator’s strategy. He wants to take people’s attention and thus their energy by creating a threatening environment that makes them totally focus on him.
In the control drama we engage daily, we are either receiving energy or being drained of energy by the people or events surrounding us in the areas of our relationships, finances, health, and personality. All things boil down to competition for energy and the need to overcome the energy struggle arising from the reality of human insecurity.
In relationships, love winds down and evolves into energy struggle when we begin to depend on energy from others, rather than from our own inner connection with the divine. I can now see that struggle for energy due to attendant control dramas between me and others accounted for the end of my relationships in the past. I can now see and handle different control dramas being employed by humans to get what they want. To address the energy struggle and its dramas, it is imperative for me to discover who I am, to know the kind of drama I play and get over it by opening up to a greater flow of spiritual energy and security within. I then begin to see myself and my behavior from a higher perspective, and the dramas others are playing as well as my own manipulations for other people’s energy. I have to avoid intimidating and manipulating others while I encourage others to do same.
iv. Principle of synchronicity
Opening to the divine source of energy makes us drop mechanistic worldview that believe everything has to be logically proved before believing in its existence, and discover our true identity and purpose. We begin to understand the reality of meaningful coincidences pushing us toward some special destiny, realizing that every meeting with another human has implications far beyond the ordinary. As James Redfield observed, “I believe everyone is born with a mission, and every time one is guided to just the right place, given just the right information, or uplift someone just the right time, it feels destined.”
The Swiss psychologist Carl Jung was the first modern thinker to define “synchronicity” as the perception of meaningful coincidence. Our challenge is to overcome the societal influence that makes us to reduce life and everything that happens to ordinary events. Pursuing life with our egos alone leads to needless struggles, but slowing down and shifting our focus makes us act on the opportunities.
We will never experience something we refuse to attract. This is the reason why many people don’t experience synchronicity, intuition, prophetic dreams, and other personal spiritual encounters. I now understand that experiences in form of challenges that came my way recently should not be given negative interpretation, so as to keep my spiritual energy. They have come to make me discern the life question most pressing for me. Looking at issues from a higher level of awareness makes me realize that there are no negative events. Each challenge presents opportunity for growth, each dead end in my evolution is merely a message, an opportunity to go in a different direction. Victor Frank made this clear in his book, “Man’s Search for Meaning:” Nothing compares with ability to have positive spiritual interpretation for negative events in life. My new understanding shows me that there had been synchronicities in my life, for example, my membership of IIGL happened for a purpose. I need not discard my powers of rational thinking; but bring them into balance with the higher part of my being to act wisely on my encounters. My understanding is clearer about the fact that there are connected events happening in my life which are responding to my readiness for growth.
v. Private victory leads to public victory
It is evident that good intrapersonal relationship developed privately leads to strong inner power and good interpersonal relationship. I cannot give what I don’t have: If I don’t love myself, I cannot love others. The source of conflict in any society is the absence of inner security and sense of completeness inside, leading to lower-quality behavior. To earn private victory, I love doing meditation exercises to have transcendent experiences that gives a glimpse of higher consciousness and opens an inner connection to keep my spiritual energy high and inner security intact.
I get connected to divine energy for inner well-being needed for self-reliance and confidence to appropriately deal with every situation. I cannot rely on others to be whole but the divine energy within me which I have to love and honor to open me up to the full potential of intrapersonal awareness. To handle all my interpersonal relationships effectively, I don’t need to depend on the energy of others but my divine energy within. To earn private victory, the Hoponopono prayer I learned in the book, “Zero Limit” by Joe Vitale is powerful in providing divine energy and inner security needed to address different challenges from people with low energy.
I learned that my private victory is seen publicly in my success as a parent. What human society is able to achieve depends on how consciously humans engage in the process of parenting. I have to expose the full scope of my spiritual awareness to my children, not regressing to the old materialistic idea I learned from my parents. I am now able to see parenting from the point of view of energy dynamics, that I should not drain my children’s energy by the way we interact. I have to ensure that I get connected to my inner energy to hold an intention of love, regardless of the situation, so as not to engage in a control drama with my children. Otherwise, they will be forced to design a control drama of their own as a means of defense. My private victory is also earned by setting personal goals in all areas of my life. I can see that the challenges I have just encountered in accomplishing my personal financial and relationship goals are messages for me to give myself time to strengthen my inner divine connection privately to gain the energy to win publicly.
vi. The ethic is to give energy to others, not take
Everything has energy that we can feel, depending on our spiritual awareness, and love is the highest source of energy. It is natural that the more energy and love we give, the more synchronistic messages come to us, and our lives become more creative and inspirational. Most importantly, we participate in preparing the world to take great leaps in evolution.
In the pre-modern era of human history, shortage of spiritual energy caused the manipulation and domination of one another, to the extent of using brute force. Hobbes’s Biological Theory of Conflict states that man’s life in the natural state is lonely, sad, short and brutish. Evolution had moved humanity away from barbarism to introduce a more civilized way to unity and discernment of truth. As a Christian, I learned that love is the greatest virtue and the spiritual messages are to teach humanity that the ethic is to give energy to others in our relationships. The idea is also preached by great minds like Mother Theresa and Martin Luther King Jr. who prefer to give energy to others from a heart of love.
vii. To change the world, we first had to change ourselves
The solution to challenges in the world or society begins with me. I can only function and interact at a higher level by broadening my spiritual awareness and experience. Personal transformation makes us overcome personal problems of insecurity, fear, and greed that have always been at the core of prejudice, inequality, and environmental degradation in the world. Social change is an internal shift in which the individual changes first, and the institutions of human culture are rejuvenated and transformed as a result of a new outlook by those who maintain them. I am a good example of the transformation in awareness that is sweeping across human culture through interaction and positive social contagion platform of IIGL. Evolution or the progress of the generations is a progress of inspiration, faith and confidence, and ever-increasing levels of inner energy. I believe there will be growing wave of individuals living the consciousness.
3. How will these ideas or lessons help you in a practical way, both in your daily personal life and in helping you to create a better world? If so, how?
My membership of IIGL is one of the realities of synchronicity, empowering me to intervene personally with those stuck in self–defeating patterns. I believe the magic of synchronicity has the power to accelerate the realization of my desires in the world. After discovering my identity and purpose in life, my successes and failures are important stories to lead me to simple truth about the world and convey my unique message to others about how to live life more fully and spiritually. I can participate with others through volunteerism to help others in need. To change the world, I have to change my thoughts and beliefs that get transmitted to others and the universe.
The control drama people show is an opportunity for me to uplift them by sending loving spiritual energy to their higher person to ease their rigid assumptions. I can see that a simple way to keep my energy high and use the power of my intentions in a positive way to uplift others is to smile as I look at faces of people with an attitude of openness. I can change a life; my smile can start a friendship, my word can end a fight, and my look can save a relationship. As I lift others I am ultimately lifted as well. One of the fastest ways of regaining my inner divine connections when I feel separated is to uplift others to move closer to their destiny. I feel obliged to project energy and healing intention toward people which relates to my Christian duty to frequently pray for others and heal the emotionally sick ones.
I can see ego as the source of conflicts in homes, organizations and nations which is manifested to cover a sense of insecurity and spiritual ignorance. With inspiration, I can overcome ego that makes humans reject and resist principle of truth, equity and fairness. I must hold on to my vision without ego to take me to the highest point of my new spiritual awareness and chart my path in life.
My advancing consciousness leads me to know that I have to abandon my control dramas by going higher to develop my energy chakras. Operating at my highest connection with the divine makes me realize that I chose the circumstance I was born into for a purpose. I have to live in the moment and free myself of the past by forgiving myself and others of past mistakes, and acknowledging that we were doing the best we could at the time based on our limited knowledge. I still find the Hoponopono prayer quite helpful in this regard. To stop reacting to other people’s control dramas and stay in the place of security takes intention and is helped by my commitment to a daily spiritual practice of meditation and prayer.
4. Quotes: Are there any statements which the author made that particularly got your attention? If so, please quote them and comment as to why they were important to you.
There are no brief quotes from the book that I wish to comment on.
5. Is there anything in the book that you do not understand or are unclear about, or are there ideas which you disagree with and if so, why?
There is nothing that I did not understand in the book or ideas I disagree with.
6. Did the book contain exercises for the reader to complete? If so, did you complete all the exercises and did you find them helpful?
The book contains no exercises for the reader to complete.
7. Was there anything you read in the book that you would like to comment on that was not covered in the previous questions? If so, please comment.
I have nothing else to comment about in the book.
Please rate the following questions on a scale of 1 to 10. Ten is good and one is poor.
A. How interesting was it to read? 9
B. How helpful were the contents? 10
C. How easy was it to understand? 9
D. Would you recommend it to others? 10
E. What is the overall rating you would give it? 9.5