As A Man Thinketh
Assessment by Ijalana Olubunmi (Nigeria)
1. What is the main idea that the author is trying to convey in the book?
The mind is a mirror that can be used to look into our actions. The mind determines the advance man of our true self. Just like a stale food is known by the rotten smell. The attitude of a man is determined by the thought of his mind. It is in the mind that the roots of the attitude are hidden but our action is the fruit thereof
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
a. Every action taken has been decided in the mind before acting. Only a fool will act before thinking. Before I take any step in deed or in words I try to ruminate over such before giving them out.
b. Like a seed sown, is the thought of man either evil or good, there will be the reaping season, when there will be the effect of such thought. A bitter man is only exhibiting the thoughts he has inhibited over the time, likewise a happy man. I have realized that anytime I’m not so patient to hear the voice of my mind, later on, there might be a tinge of regret.
c. A mind that is not patterned towards right thinking will end up thinking wrong. While growing up I have learnt that I can consciously take charge of my thinking approach. Attitude is a choice; it is not based on circumstances.
d. Man is the Lord of his thoughts and wherever he wants he sends his thoughts. Like a driver, man takes the lead of his mind, driving out his real person in his actions.
e. Most of the prevalent ailments these days are as a result of the thoughts that men bear in their inner bodies evolving to their physical bodies. Envy, malice, hatred, un-forgiveness etc, these are feelings like contents which when harbored in the body of man which is the container do much havoc to the body than on whoever such feelings are exerted.
f. Whatever I can think I can do and if I have not been conquered in my mind then I can’t be conquered physically. Everything is built twice in life – first in the mind and second when it manifests. Every action first shows up as a thought before manifesting as the real acts which is observed in our attitude. Nobody can condemn me if I have not condemned myself solely in my mind. I must learn to think right about others and about myself.
g. Victories attained by right thought can be maintained only by watchfulness. After attaining my goal I don’t have to relax totally or go to sleep but keep pressing on. I need to guide my heart; I must face the battle of the mind. The mind is like a traffic that needs constant check.
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 learnt that I have to try and keep my mind with all carefulness because out of it comes all the issues of life. That is if I’ll succeed in life, the dependent is highly on my mind and not just my mind but the thought I allow to function in my mind either good or evil. Also that I have to keep my mind under surveillance of the spirit of God. The mind serves as the orator for the spirit of good and evil but depending on the one – either good or evil to which I commit it to serve and that my mind will serve not just my mind only but likewise my body.
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. “his character being the complete sum of all his thoughts” – all that I do as a man either spontaneous or unpremeditated is a result of my thoughts. The “making phase” or “behind the scene” of every action is in the mind. The mind is never satisfied until fully expressed but it decides one’s success or failure in life.
b. “that man is the master of thought, the molder of character, and the maker and shaper of condition, environ” – My destiny is in my thoughts than it is in my hands. What I allow to go around in mind; will as a matter of time eventually come around in my situation.
c. “Only by much searching and mining are gold and diamonds obtained” – Only by taking conscious control of my thought can it be patterned towards rightful thinking. I have to work on my thought approach, if I want to succeed in life.
d.” If you would perfect your body, guard your mind. If you would renew your body, beautify your mind.” – My mind plays a vital role in making my physical body. Every allow a place in my mind; like the aura of either a sweet smelling fragrance or the bad smell of a rotten egg radiates unto my person in my day to day activities – my attitude. Whatever I want to see in my body I should first administer to my mind.
e. “One man is an oppressor because many are slaves; let us despise the slaves.” – One can only be imprisoned by his own thoughts and not someone else’s. having low self esteem starts from the inside before it is acted out.
f. “Spiritual achievements are the consummation of holy aspirations” – What I want to become I have to work towards. My passion decides my attainment.
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, nothing is unclear and I’m not disagreeing with any of the ideas
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?
Yes I did and its exercises are advantageous to me, as a reader.
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.
No
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? 8
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
Jonathan Livingston Seagull
Assessment by Ljalana Olubunmi (Nigeria)
What is the main idea that the author is trying to convey in the book?
You can break tradition, protocol as long as you know what you believe in and succeed to become a leader in your field.
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.
a. Livingston Seagull – was no ordinary bird. It is your uniqueness that will stand you out amongst the rest. That great potential you carry will make you stall even when it is believed that it is dishonour and shame for Seagulls to stall. Personally I’ve got to realize that there are some things that I can do ordinarily but there are some that I can carry out extra-ordinarily. And those that I think I can do extraordinarily will never be extraordinaire until I invest my time on time.
b. There is always a hiding phase which is also the period for practicing. “Consistent practicing brings perfection”. In this phase, one is unknown, infamous and most of the time alone. Until I leave the ground level and soar, I might not be seen. For me to reach the place of my perfection, I have to keep working towards my destination, provided I won’t tire out.
c. If I give my ears to failure, it will take over my mind which is my thinking faculty and then with time take control of my action if care is not exercised. There had been times that I’d failed and almost thinking that that had been the end but each time I rise up on my feet, learning that there is another story of success to be told. After my college education I stayed a home without admission for almost four years this was due to my indecision, and then I thought failure was lurking at the corner waiting to glance at me face-to-face, but thereafter, today I can tell it loud where the snag lies in choice making career wise.
d. In every failed attempt there is a method of succeeding. There is a lesson of success there, so learn and keep these lessons in further pursuit of excellence. In life there are principles to be kept to succeed and one of those principles is perseverance – that even when it hurts expect yourself to laugh at last, even when it looks gloomy try and keep trying until you come to the place of your light. Never say over because you might just be at the edge of breaking through. Nobody knows how long it may take but something is sure and that is there is always new day after every dark night! And for that, victory is a gift with a wrapper carrying the look of failure. How long it will take to unwrap? I don’t know but I know victory is certain after the wrapper is successfully removed.
e. There’s a reason to life! We can list ourselves out of ignorance, we can find ourselves as creatures of excellence and intelligence and skill. We can be free! We can learn to fly! The more I learn to develop myself personally, the more my altitude in life. I cannot give what I don’t have. It is what I have been able to gain in life that I can give back to impact my generation. I believe the greatest reason to life is to give – your service to humanity is you. An unsharpened skill is like an un existing one. That’s why I have to obey the rules of personal development and when I develop myself personally, others can take their root in development I might have gained over time.
f. The more you practice to develop yourself, the more you are getting set for opportunities, so that when opportunities come, you won’t be caught unawares. Opportunities don’t announce their arrival; all they do is to pick their prospect that is appropriate for the work at hand. Opportunities are not seen with the naked eyes but by the prepared eyes and minds.
g. There is more to life than doing the same thing all the time and expecting different result. Leaders take risks. The success of such risks brings out the star in the leader and makes him celebrated. A leader is one who is ahead of the crowd and for you to stay ahead; you don’t have to do what others are doing. You can afford to be different and distinct. It is the success of your story that will now draw others to celebrate your 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?
Personally, these ideas have taught me that I have to write at least a poem a day; i.e. practice what I do daily. And also that I can only find my-type of persons in the level that I am, so I have to enhance my exposure and meet with people of higher and greater mindset of having positive effect in their time. And for me to be able to maximize my potentials in affecting my generation positively I must have positively grown myself by working with others that carry like-visions.
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. “… in the very times when every other gull stood on the ground, knowing nothing but mist and rain, He learned to ride the high winds far inland, to dine there on delicate insects”. – Down there it is stuffy but up there, there is room. There are so many yet to understand and live for purpose while few are flying already. I have to understand the need for me to stay awake while others are dozing, if I want to stay ahead.
b. “Who is more responsible than a gull who finds and follows a meaning, a higher purpose for life?” – My sense of responsibility becomes define when I’m awake to my reason for living. It is not enough for me to find the reason for life but I must pursue my purpose to bring it to fulfillment. I’ll become more responsible when I pay attention to the call of purpose.
c. “But the speed was power, and the speed was joy, and the speed was pure beauty”. . “Perfect speed, my son, is being there.” – My achievement should serve as a means for me to want to accomplish more success. Like a lubricant, past achievements should serve as an antidote to friction in the wheel of success.
d.” but the weight of failure was even heavier on his back.” – If I allow the force of failure to drive me, I’ll be depressed and achieve little or nothing. The voice of failure is always coarse but listen, the voice of success as gentle not for timidity but for patience.
d. “We’ve come to take you higher, to take you home.” – In my aspirations for success, there will always be opportunity. And so, I have to be prepared. Opportunity appears to the prepared. Nobody can see or understands opportunity like someone who’s set already.
e. “It always works, when you know what you’re doing” – The world will stand still for a man to pass who knows his way.
f. “keep working on love.” – Love is a broad subject whose lessons are like water in a deep well that is being drawn but can not be exhausted.
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, nothing is unclear and I’m not disagreeing with any of the ideas.
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?
Yes I did and its exercises are advantageous to me, as a reader.
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.
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? 8
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? 10
Success Through A Positive Mental Attitude
Assessment by Ijalana Olubunmi (Nigeria)
1. What is the main idea that the author is trying to convey in the book?
Based on the analysis made in the book, i.e. references made to the life stories of men and women who were paupers turned great and influential men, may I state that the cogent idea passed across to me in the book success through a positive mental attitude is “if a man’s mind is sound and healthy then the entirety of the man will likewise be but on the other hand, if anything is wrong with a man’s mind, everything will be wrong with the man”.
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.
a. There is so much to gain and nothing to lose by trying. Succeeding is as easy as trying. I can try my way into success as long as the vision is clear and the goals are set. During my ND 1 days, I had a friend who was encouraging me to turn out great in life and so when we talked, I told him about my passion for arts and how I will love to have my first degree in an art discipline precisely English Language. He felt that will be good for me also. Together we started working towards the reality of the dream. So he took it upon himself to help me purchase the University Matriculation Examination form and he brought it to me in school. From there I knew the vision has started unfolding, I bought some reviewed questions of the examinations that had been conducted in the past. Permit me to state that my preparation for the exam was a ‘parboiled’ one. I sat for the exam and it was unbelievable for me when I heard and saw the results – I scored 221 in an exam that I never had an extramural class before taking. I knew everything narrowed down to God’s help. I went further to write the Post UME where I scored above average. Left for my O’ level result, (having been a science student all that while) I met with the requirements for my admission. But the delay in the release of the GCE results didn’t allow my resumption into the school that year. The reason for my story is that the UME I took then was a trial and it yielded good result – an encouragement making me more passionate to pursuing my dream of becoming a lecturer until it becomes real. I have not lost anything for trying but failure. The difference between failure and success is that one keeps trying while the other gives up on trying.
b. When I keep my mind on the things that I want and off the things that I don’t want, I tend to achieve my purpose fast. If my mind says I can then I can and I have to make use of the self starter which is DO IT NOW. I’m due to resume school for my HND before the end of this year. So my friends in school have been calling me to know when I’ll be coming to do that but because I’ve some plans working out in my mind, I know now that I won’t be going back for the HND now. This has prompted me to take the action of purchasing the needed form to change my course of study and preparing to take the exams by reading the appropriate books so I could pass the required examinations.
c. Knowing what I want brings me to its recognition when I find it. If I know what I want I can find a way that will not violate the laws of infinite intelligence and the rights of my fellow men to bring what I want to fruition. A way of accepting what is referred to in the book success through a positive mental attitude as the priceless gift – joy of work and while I keep working and not just working but working with PMA – Positive Mental Attitude, success is certain! My indulgence in IIGL is a practical way for me to leave the mediocre level and come to the place of knowledge which will help me change my person and impact my world positively.
d. The greatest one is the one who implants the seed of greatness in everyone. God never leaves us stranded. For everyone He created; He has a purpose. The place of divine guidance in every life can not be over-emphasized. As a Christian, I keep praying to God that I may fulfill His purpose for my life. When I pray and I keep my faith in God, I’m divinely guided to see things that seem to be adversities turn out to be blessing in disguise like Lee and Wise prayed for help and they found it
e. I will have to start from where I am to get to where I want to be. It should be a step at a time because every referable success has a starting point. This can be seen in the stories of those great men (Morris Pickus, Andrew Carnegie, S.B Fuller, Henry Ford etc.) in the book success through a positive mental attitude and many great men today not referred to in the book success through a positive mental attitude such as Ben Carson, Myles Munroe etc.
f. There is nothing new under the heaven but success resides in doing what others have done but doing it in a different way and with a touch of creativity. When I plan and act, inspiration will always come to me because victory is inbuilt but it requires of me to play the vital role of action.
g. When I try to prove to people whom I met that they are wrong instead of attracting them to me, I repel them. I must start with myself first. Like the lesson learnt from the story of the minister’s son, this connotes that ‘if I’m right, my world will be right’. ‘My world’ there signifies so many things such as my associates, my career etc. If there’s something I don’t like in ‘My world’ and I want to change it, the place to start is myself.
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?
a. The lessons serve as an ‘eye opener’ to the fact that until I stop trying, I can accomplish my dreams in life. That if I don’t try, the chances of stumbling into what could turn out into a great invention by me will be zero. I have to keep trying until I try my way into success with the help PMA.
b. If I apply the self starter referred to as DO IT KNOW! it will help me overcome the habit of procrastinating. When I respond to the self starter, it enhances better investment of my time.
c. I have learnt that to succeed in anything, I must engage in constructive thinking with the aid of PMA, study, learning and planning time with regularity. This equals to goal settings. I must set my goals and keep checking to know how far I have gone in accomplishing them. Because if I fail to plan that amounts to planning to fail.
d. The quickest way to make money is to sell what I have – my talent. If I don’t use my talent it remains dormant, if I do use it, it brings profit – to God, to me and my world. I am working on my writing ability and for now what I do is to write a poem between three days, hopefully I will like to publish the poems as a book by God’s grace.
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. ‘we are poor – not because of God’ – God has designed in all inbuilt victory but the victory is inert until we desire it.
b. ‘your world will change whether or not you choose to change it’ – change is inevitable, but the steps I take in life determines what direction the occurrence of my change will take.
c. ‘Necessity is the mother of invention and the father of crime’ – PMA will make me see the reason why I should invent honorable achievement while NMA becomes the excuse for atrocities based on the theory of necessity.
d. ‘the most important word in any language is God’ ‘the highest ideal of man is the will of God’– God is the greatest in the universe. His word is the wisest – the Bible, His love is the purest – His son, Jesus. A life without God’s will is a drifting life that will end up making either less or no impact. When God drives you, you are bound to arrive safely.
e. ‘they assimilated what they read and got into action’ ‘what is worth having is worth working for’ – it is not enough to desire neither is it not enough to read books but I must act what I desire.
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, nothing is unclear and I’m not disagreeing with any of the ideas.
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?
Yes I did and its exercises are helpful, to me as a reader.
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. None
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 others? 10
E. What is the overall rating you would give it? 10
Psycho – Cybernetics 2000
Assessment by Ijalana Olubunmi (Nigeria)
1) What is the main idea that the author is trying to convey in the book?
The major idea that I understood to be communicated by the writer is that self-image serves as the foundation upon which talents and capabilities are erected; if one’s self-image is dented, such functionality will not be normal and will be destructive. But if one’s self-image is intact, one will be confident to stay alive and pursue one’s goal. Also that self-image is the quality of the inner man of a person.
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 why it was important to you. Use personal examples from your life.
i. No real behavioral changes could take place unless the self-image was changed. Anyone could start a new and self fulfilling life by changing his self-image. The strength to change ‘me’ is in how I see ‘me’ change and who I see me change into, all in the power of my self-image.
ii. The winner is someone who doesn’t personalize failure, such who can be disappointed without feeling like a failure. Early 2008 after I’d checked my UME results and I met the cut-off mark, also I went for the University Screening Exam and the results showed that I passed and I was admitted. But due to the lateness in the release of my O’ levels, I missed the registration and that admission. Though I wasn’t happy with that situation but I took it in good faith. Yet not giving up, now, I’ve registered for another O’ level examination and I’m also preparing to write the exam. Before I registered for the latest exam, I tried checking the old one (because all this while I was unable to access the result); this time around the result was accessible for me, though the Literature-in-English was scored D7. But in all I am encouraged because I now know where I should reinforce so I could come out in flying colors. All through the above situation, all thanks to God, He made me strong, I didn’t lose heart, I didn’t lose focus and I’m trusting God to perfect my testimony because this is part of my goals in life.
iii. We always act in a way that is consistent with our self-image. We may try to change our behavior through willpower, positive thinking and affirmation but these can truly work if only we change our concept of ourselves. Unless what has been impressed in me by past experiences is changed and my self-image is allowed to focus and imprint on my heart a positive ‘me’, through constant practice, it might be difficult to change my outward person.
iv. I shouldn’t be afraid of feedback from trusted people around me and also the change that I feel within myself because they play vital role in the replacement of my self-image and in the accomplishment of my goals. From what I learnt from this book, (Psycho – Cybernetics 2000), oftentimes people who suffered negative self-image were inflicted through other people’s words about them mostly while they were younger. Likewise I believe good advice can help boost self confidence. Because our self-image begins with others opinion about us. That’s why I should be ready to talk to people who believe in me and shouldn’t feel bad if I’m criticized for my good also with appropriate self-criticism.
v. Success is instinctive but sometimes we block the instinct, by watching our limits instead of our destinations and we end up bumping against those limits. Though I believe if everyone of us on earth will have the same access to wealth and knowledge, yet not all will still end up being successful because there will always be excuses while some won’t succeed. So even if success is inborn, it still requires our effort to make it real. I must be ready to take risks to attain my goals. As I’m gifted in writing and speaking, if these gifts are left undeveloped, there will be no way they can grow and if they are left un-groomed, there is no way they can yield positively such that I can impact my world and fulfill God’s purpose for my life. And how do I even make profit if my gifts are left unattended to? Because my gifts are meant to pay my bills also.
vi. I should not be discouraged, if I encounter set backs, slowdowns, obstacles and diversions because often these are nothing more than worry over what might never happen. But I should take steps to be hopeful of the best, distinguish the situations and move past them.
vii. Bearing it in mind that as I dehypnotize myself from false beliefs, I will be contributing to my children’s success as well as mine. If my belief system had began from memories of my early childhood, with reflections I received from my parents, then if my parents had known this truth, maybe some words they had used while relating to me when I was younger wouldn’t have come to be. And now that I have known the truth, I look forward to being a better parent by subjecting my children to words that will make them and build up in them positive self-image.
3) How will these ideas or lesson help you in a practical way both in your daily personal life and in helping you to create a better world? If so, how?
Personally, I’ve made up my mind that ‘I will never settle low’ but I’ll keep my gaze on the BIG PICTURE. I’m set to use the power of imagination until it yields me positive results. Even at home with my parents, siblings and my friends; I’ve learnt that I should delay my response even when it’s obvious that I’m angry because response is nothing but a habit that can be replaced. So instead of flaring up, I can choose to be calm.
Once “wishes are not goals”, much from these ideas I have learnt that goals are meant to be written down and the goals should S-pecific, M-easurable, A-ction-oriented R-ealistic T-ime-conscious (SMARTly) followed up.
4) Are there brief quotes from the book which really got your attention? If so, please list and comment on them.
i. “Mental practice help to make perfect” – I have to discipline myself always to CANCEL negative images and allow the positive images in my imaginations. Though “nobody is perfect”, but only by vividly imagining me in my new and positive role on daily basis will I persuade my subconscious mind that the affirmations are really me.
ii. “We act or fail to act, not because of ‘will’ as is so commonly believed, but because of imagination” – if I can believe or think it, I can achieve it. Even the bible records that “Our God is able to do exceedingly abundantly above what we can ask or imagine”. This text confirms that the Almighty God acknowledges our imaginations.
iii. “Nothing worthwhile happens overnight” – while practicing what I’ve learnt in this book, I have to implement patience.
iv. “It is not what you know about your resistance that is going to make a difference, it is what you do with what you know” – in the course of reading this book, some hidden truths were revealed to me but after reading the book, no effort is made by me to better my situation with the knowledge that I have gained then it will remain dormant. Because the book is to serve as aid in my decision to better my world. Change will not come until I do something to change me.
v. “The time to worry about the decision is before you make it” – in any situation that I may find myself instead of regretting or pushing the blames on others, I’ve learnt to savor such moment so that I can learn from my mistake.
vi. “When you are worrying about past failure, you are focusing on failure” – worry beclouds one’s faculty of positive imagination, while worrying about past mistakes, one is keeping one’s gaze on negative imagination and the end result can’t be positive.
vii. “You will reduce your anxiety far more effectively by addressing one problem than by worrying over six”. “No matter how busy you are, time comes to you at a rate of only 60 minutes/24hours” – I must take a step at a time in accomplishing my goals.
viii. “The only way people can push you buttons is if you let it happen” – I have learnt that stress comes not from any event but from my response to it and that response is nothing but a habit that I can replace.
ix. “If you are at the top there is no where to go but … down” – the secret is to keep moving.
x. “Be willing to make a few mistakes, to suffer a little pain to get hat you want” – there’s no gainsay if I can dare to take risks, I can master
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?
None
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?
Yes, but the exercises are not meant to be completed, they are meant to be practiced throughout one’s lifetime. The exercises are so practical and readily helpful.
7) Was there anything you read in the book but you would like to comment on that was not covered in the previous questions? If so, please comment.
Nothing
Please rate the following questions on a scale from 1-10, 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? 10
Napoleon Hills Key to Success
Assessment Ijalana Olubunmi (Nigeria)
1. What is the main idea that the author is trying to convey in the book?
Napoleon Hills itemized 17 principles of success with a solid analysis of how these principles can be adapted into our daily living. Also making it clear that success is achievable in every facet of our lives when we determinedly work towards its achievement.
2. What were the seven ideas which were personally most important to you and why? List those seven ideas followed by an explanation after each one as to why it was important to you. Use personal examples from your life.
i. The destiny of nations has been changed and defined by the power of those who know how to speak effectively and those people have earned a permanent place in history. An example of such great men is Martin Luther King Jr., the wonderful man with that glorious speech ‘I have a dream’, a dream he had, believed in and fought for with the last drop of his blood, though he is not alive to see the fruit of his labor today, but his work still speaks after he has long been gone. On the 27th of November 2007, I woke up very early to prepare and leave for campus (because I lived off-campus). When I got to school that morning, I went to the other classes and wrote on their chalkboards the caption ‘Ignorance hates Knowledge’, this was meant to be an invitation to an interactive session which eventually took place in my class later in that day. I thought I should call for an interactive session between the ladies in my class and the other classes, when I looked around and realized how gullible the female tend to be in their relationships with their opposite gender. Later on that day, after school work, the session took place and experiences were related, questions were asked, practical answers were given and I believe the ladies present had one or two lessons to learn.
ii. Sometimes the hardest person to get along with is the one who uses your toothbrush, the same one you see in the mirror every morning. The only enemy that one can have is oneself because the world is ready to step aside and allow one who knows where he is going to pass.
iii. Money is nice, but it certainly will not be the only thing that makes you successful – or allows you to enjoy success. There is a wise saying that money can buy you a good bed but it can not buy you sound sleep, money can you buy you a beautiful wife but it can not buy you a happy home. Money is only a means to end and not an end to a means. Money does not define success. Success is not measured only by how much you have in bank account but success is attaining your maximum height in impacting others life.
iv. Every one faces defeat. Failure and pain are one language through which nature speaks to every living creature pointing out mistakes. I need not accept defeat as failure but only as a transitory event that may prove to be a blessing in disguise. Defeat is never the same as failure unless and until it has been accepted as such. I need to thank my faults when they are revealed to me because I cannot truly understand them until I have fought them. Because how do I know where my weakness lies if I’d not made any mistake. I should recognize that every adversity, sorrow or defeat contains the seed of an equivalent benefit which I can nurture into a blessing that soars above the disaster that brought it.
v. The courage of two separate individuals is nothing compared with that of a united team, just as the power of a single battery is less than that of a group of batteries. The more the minds that are linked together, the greater the power harnessed, and the more the resistance that can be overcome. I am to form a mastermind alliance with myself and then build my mastermind alliance into my marriage from the start, and it will steady and support me through the darkest moment. One of the things that fascinates me so much about International Institute of Global Leadership is that the books they give to us (students) teach how to live an exemplary life in every aspects of our lives – marital, financial, business, career etc. I have learnt that before marriage, I and my spouse may have our individual visions but in marriage, we should both work together as a team in the fulfillment of our goals. Even the bible says ‘two are better than one, that one will chase a thousand and two will put ten thousand to flight.’
vi. Emotion are energy in motion tied to the expression of passion, I can control the directions to which I’m dissipating my energy by exercise of my will. I must control and direct my emotions not abolish them.. Like a driver my emotions provide the activating force which enables me to put my decisions into action. Just like the negative emotions, the positive emotions can be destructive too, if I do not organize and release them with conscious control.
vii. When you act as soon as you must, the habit of procrastination dies from not being fed, and no one laments its passing. I have to occupy my mind with doing what I want to do so that no time will be left for it to stray to the things I do not want to do.
3. How will these ideas or lessons help you in a practical way both in your daily personal life and in helping to create a better world? If so, how?
Having learnt that success is not just in how much wealth I can acquire or accumulate to myself, but in (attaining my maximum height in impacting other’s life) how many lives can be touched by me in my generation with the gifts (writing and speaking) that God has embedded in me; I have made up my mind to go practical in implementing my dreams. One of the ways is that I’m meeting with the young girls in Secondary Schools; creating an avenue for me to listen to these young ones view their difficulties in their choice of career and relationship and I’ll likewise relate my experiences in life; some pitfalls that I’ll not like them to fall victims. The first edition took place on 12th November in my younger sister’s school.. It was glorious!
4. Are there brief quotes from the book which really got your attention? If so, please list and comment on them.
The best way to receive love is to give. The ‘Karma’ law holds here that you do unto others as you would have others do unto you.
Drifting through life without aim or purpose is the first cause of failure – Napoleon. The likes of William Sydney, Warren Avis recognized that in order to make their lives amount to something, they had to become doers by taking control of their time. If one fails to plan, such is planning to fail.
98% out of 100% fails because they never really define their goals and starts towards them. There are drifters, there are dreamers, and these two are common unlike the ones who follow up their dreams to the place of action. This is because the first two set never make up their mind about their major purpose in life; they simply cannot make a decision and stick to it.
Your progress towards success begins with one fundamental question – where are you going to? Real success starts with the definition of purpose.
My greatest asset is a sound mind with which I can shapen your own destiny. You can never achieve anything great without learning to think accurately.
Success is something I create for myself not something others steal from me. My decision determines my destination.
Abstain from negative conversations. The bible says ‘evil communication corrupts good manner.’
Do not fear criticism; encourage it. Especially constructive criticism, though this is hard to do but it must be done.
Look on life as a continuing learning process, and even bad experiences will become good ones. Because this will help me to get going with renewed confidence each time I fail and definitely attaining success will only be a matter of time.
Remember that prayer brings the best results when you have sufficient faith with a positive mental attitude to see yourself in possession of the things you are praying for. Prayer changes things – even the worst situation. I’m living witness.
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. there is nothing unclear to me in the book and I’m not disagreeing with any idea in the book.
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 exercises are helpful and practical way for readers to adapt the 17 Principles of Success into one’s life. They are meant to be carried out everyday of one’s 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.
None
Please rate the following questions on a scale from 1-10, Ten is good and One is poor.
1. How interesting was it to read? 7
2. How helpful were the contents? 8
3. How easy was it to understand? 8
4. Would you recommend it to others? 9
5. What is the overall rating you would give it? 8
The New Dynamics of Winning
Assessment by Ijalana Olubunmi (Nigeria)
1. What is the main idea that the author is trying to convey in the book?
Denis Waitley in his book – the new dynamics of winning, made it clear that winning is taking the talent and potential you were born with, developing it through mental and physical training, and using it fully towards the achievement of a purpose that makes you feel worthwhile both in your professional and personal life.
2. What were the seven ideas which were personally most important to you and why? List those seven ideas followed by an explanation after each one as to why it was important to you. Use personal examples from your life.
a. Though the unexpected is happening on daily basis. The opportunities are still there, certainly, but you are going to have yourself prepare differently, train more thoroughly, act more intelligently and proactively and anticipate future trends. You are going to have to make them happen. It takes hard work, careful decision-making, technical expertise, the support of family and friends. But what’s most important is your ability to access the inner resources of strength and commitment; these are the defining characteristics of champions in any field. It has been said by the wise that only a fool will keep doing the same thing and expect a different result. Every one in a race runs for the gold medal but only one athlete eventually wears the gold medal. In my choice of career, it is definite that some are practicing this profession now and some will still do, even by the time I attain. Yet I can always be the best if I am able to harness my inner strength and commitment.
b. By definition, motivation is motive in action. Champions know how to transform their aspirations into actions in the real world. At some point in their lives, not always early, they saw something they really wanted to accomplish. They saw it, vaguely and nonspecifically at first. Then they began to think about it, to consider it, to get to know it, to examine it, study it, try it, fail at it, succeed at it, get knowledge about it, field-test it, get coached in it, develop skills in it, and as the concept took shape, it also took root, and like the seedling of a redwood tree, the motive – the goal – is pushed upward through the earth, through bedrock, up through mountains of doubt, sky-ward, tolerating no distraction or obstacle in the way. For every long term success, there is always a process of making. In this process, there can be failure because at times, because you don’t always succeed in what you have not once failed in. One of the inner strength that I’ve got in my academic pursuit is in my last O’ level exams, wherein I had E8 in the literature in English. The fortitude I gained from this failure-like incident is that it made me decide the more to succeed in the latest exam that I wrote.
c. It’s obvious that talent, looks, and other attributes aren’t equally distributed among us, but we are all given an abundance of value – more than we could use in several lifetimes. The game of life certainly isn’t played on a level playing field for each of us in terms of education, a supportive home life, and other circumstances beyond our control, but I can assure you that you were born with the qualities of a champion. That’s what I meant by value. It’s true that we are all born with the worth of a champion but this value can either be lost or render useless by our perception and responses.
d. I’d been telling myself that I’ll change my field of discipline; I did this for some years. Along the line, I met a friend who showed great interest in every that concerns me. This friend encouraged me, bought the entry form for the examination (UME). I wrote the exam and miraculously, I passed. Right there, there was a new definition of purpose in my life – a total turning point. That even when the GCE didn’t work, I’m sure it will work. For most of us, this moment of truth, this magnificent turning point in our lives, is not so dramatic or satisfying or even recognizable. But recognize it or not, you will have a moment of truth that can alter the course of your life forever, if only you’ll catch it and make the most of it.
e. There is no doubt that fame and fortune tend to breed arrogance and a sense of immense personal power. No matter how much wealth or recognition the world lays at your feet, don’t allow your personal integrity to be contradicted by your behavior in any area of your life. It’s not just a matter of preserving your reputation. It’s a matter of living life with character. Integrity is nonsituational, and it is absolute. We have a group named sculp (from sculpture), every Friday, we come together to discuss issues on leadership based on biblical principles. The facilitator of the programme is my boss and the meetings, for now hold in our office. We had the 20th session last Friday. We’ve discussed some issues in time past but the latest is what we called the seven mountains of our economic development. – Arts and entertainment, business, education, family, government, media and religion. Most members of this group are youths, this is meant to prepare our hearts to become transformational leaders in our various field..
f. Winners see the act of winning in advance – vivid, multidimensional, textured, clear. Champions know that “what you see is what you’ll be”. The bible says in Hebrews 11:1 “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” If you can see something in your mind’s eye, and you imagine it over and over again, you will begin to believe it is really there in substance. As a result, your actions, both physical and mental, will move to bring about in reality the image you are visualizing. This is the power of imagination. “As a man thinketh so he is.”
g. You are your own most important judge. There is no opinion has important to your performance and well-being as the opinion you have of yourself. I need to be aware of any negative talk that crosses my mind and stop it in its tracks either by saying “cancel!” or “stop now!”
3. How will these ideas or lessons help you in a practical way both in your daily personal life and in helping to create a better world? If so, how?
Champions know where they are and they see where they want to go. Dominating and focusing their thoughts and energy on the desired result, they are moving towards. I have made up my mind to exploit the power of positive imagination more than I’ve been doing before.
4. Are there brief quotes from the book which really got your attention? If so, please list and comment on them.
a. Convert your desire to win into a total commitment to win by paying the price of success. That I am talented is without question but I must be ready to pay the price so I can win the prize.
b. There is no question that thought gives birth to action, for better or worse. Every accomplishment starts from within.
c. The way to develop the best in anyone is by appreciation and encouragement, even myself by internal dialogue.
d. Mistakes are painful when they happen but years later, a collection of mistakes are called experiences. It’s not good to make mistake but it is better to learn from mistakes so as to help others escape such mistakes. To achieve excellence I have to correct my mistakes that I can correct, learn from them and then tell others, like I have decided to do by holding speaking engagements with young girls in Secondary Schools, telling them how they can make better choices of career and relationship.
e. The people who read the most are the most successful, regardless of occupation. I have learnt that the books one reads widen one’s sphere of knowledge. Big thanks to IIGL.
f. Courage is not the absence of fear but knowing what to do in the presence of fear. If I feel confident of myself as a person I can admit weakness, even fear and anxiety, and not endanger my mission.
g. The best way to foster good habits, of course, is by setting a good example yourself. People are going to learn from what I do not what I say.
h. Pray for guidance and give thanks for your blessings every day. The bible says “trust in the Lord with all your heart, in all your ways acknowledge Him and lean not on your own understanding” the bible also says that “in all things give thanks.”
h. Mindset is what determines the ultimate performance of a champion, not talent or ability. Because what you reveal outside is what you feel on the inside.
i. Seeing leads to believing, believing leads to achieving. If my mind-eye can see it and my imagination can believe it, it’s a matter of time, I can achieve success.
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 think everything in the book is well understood by me.
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.
I am meant to carry out the twenty-one day training programme at the end of the book. This includes literally everything I do everyday throughout my personal and professional life. I am yet to complete the exercises but I believe they will be 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.
None
Rating.
1. How interesting was it to read? 7
2. How helpful were the contents? 8
3. How easy was it to understand? 8
4. Would you recommend it to others? 9
5. What is the overall rating you would give it? 8
Real Magic
Assessment by Ijalana Olubunmi (Nigeria)
1. What is the main idea that the author is trying to convey in the book?
The central theme of the book ‘Real Magic’ is that the universe and all that is in it is on purpose. Each life has one big divine mission, and getting one’s life to purpose is crucial, because it is the only place where one can begin to manifest miracles.
2. What were the seven ideas which were personally most important to you and why? List those seven ideas followed by an explanation after each one as to why it was important to you. Use personal examples from your life.
a. There will be many with whom you will stay in close physical contact and with whom you will choose to create spiritual relationships. So be it. Individuals will enter and exit your life much like the characters in a play. Some will have minor roles to play, and others will have starring roles for a while, and still others will help you to co-direct and co-produce your life. Always they will be important to the overall play itself. Always they deserve your inner love. You will learn not to judge those who move in and out of your play, only to honour their appearance, even if they play their roles badly. Ultimately you will get to the place where you can look back at all of the people who have been in your life, and realize you encountered them because they all had something to teach you.
b. You have the power to reject behaviors, attitudes and beliefs that you find objectionable. Although you cannot eliminate the influences that were very a part of your childhood, you and you alone decide whether they will persist. Cultivate the inner knowing that your family influences you today to the extent that you believe they do. If you do not accept total responsibility for how they fit into your life, then you will not allow any miraculous personality changes to occur.
c. 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. Just of recent I was troubled about the issue of my going back to school for my degree, it was in this process, that my boss learnt about some irrational steps that I was about taking. So, he advised me and this I cannot forget, he said “let the hands of your passion be where your heart of passion is”. He was actually trying to say that I should do what I can do best and excel well.
d. Nothing is more likely to help a person overcome or endure troubles than the consciousness of having a task in life.
e. The man or woman who realizes God has everything and lacks nothing: having this, one desires nothing further; he cannot be shaken by the heaviest burden of sorrow. Life cannot threaten such a person; all it holds is the opportunity to love, to serve and to give. The supreme goal of human existence is attained when we become peaceful with our own immortality and view death not as an ending or a punishment, but as an awakening, a reward, a return to the infinity that surrounds our parentheses in eternity. Jesus Christ told Nicodemus in the Bible, that, “except a man be born again, he cannot enter the kingdom of God”. The great tragedy is not death but what dies in you when you are still alive. A life without Christ is a life in crises! There is almost a universal agreement among those who have been to the edge. They all report blissful lights and an absence of suffering. An eternal welcoming. You can read it and believe, or you can be skeptical. The choice is always yours. To cause the real magic to take place; God must be present and no one goes to the father except through the son (Jesus Christ).
f. Talent is thought of generally as some God-given innate ability that allows some to achieve at higher levels than others. Mozart had talent, some mystical gift handed to him by God. Michael Jordan has talent. Kanu Nwankwo, Jay Jay Okocha and the likes have talents. We can agree on those who have this thing called talent, but we cannot define it. Talent is not by comparism but in any particular way, your talent is simply what you believe about yourself and how you have compared yourself with the performance of others. You can begin to say to yourself, “I am talented as I have chosen to become, and while I admire and enjoy the performance of others, their actions say nothing about what I can or cannot achieve.”
g. Your personality is made up of the hundreds of habitual ways that you conduct the daily physical affairs of your life. Being unhappy is a habit. Being depressed is a habit. Being lazy is a habit. Being limited is a habit. These, and many other personality traits, result from the way in which you use your mind. But learning to think in nonhabitual ways is the essence of overcoming personality traits that no longer serve you.
3. How will these ideas or lessons help you in a practical way both in your daily personal life and in helping to create a better world? If so, how?
If I make all the difference in the world, and my presence here is a divine necessity. Perfect and purposeful. If my inner silent invisible mind is the director of my world and the world that I find myself immersed in, I, as a single individual have to take heed of the good and beautiful. Then, I will indeed fill myself and those around me with a new freedom in my mind, the freedom to create real magic.
I have decided to begin a process of affirmations reflecting a consciousness of confidence and strength by talking about my unlimited capacity to learn any new intellectual skill and appreciating the fears I have overcome.
That if I want confidence to expand in my life, I must speak of my confidence, and mention examples of that confidence. I have to keep that zone of self-assuredness in my mind and practice letting those new miraculous thoughts develop their material equivalent in my daily world.
4. Are there brief quotes from the book which really got your attention? If so, please list and comment on them.
a. You have loving relationship with others, because you bring love rather than because you seek it from them.
b. Everything in the universe has a purpose. Everything exists for some reasons. I need to remind myself daily that I am a purposeful being. When I am living on purpose, giving of myself in a blissful way, my personality will reflect that bliss. I will manifest the necessary talent and intellect to fulfill my purpose.
c. The ancestor to every action is a thought. Your thoughts create your experience of your health, wealth and every detail of your world. You live the life you imagine you are living. When you stop imagining or imaging or thinking you cease actively participating in your real world.
d. You must become the producer, director and actor in the unfolding story of your life. If someone else is at the controls, then you are their victim, even if they seem to be directing you on a positive course.
e. Life gives examinations and unless you learn from your mistakes, you are doomed to repeat them.
f. You can never get enough of what you don’t want. If you have judged yourself to be lacking in any personality variable, you will continue to manifest that lack as long as you focus on it in your mind.
g. Everyone who has ever made a difference in the world has been an innovator. If you believe that the culture determines who you are and what kind of person you will turn out to be, then that will be your reality. An innovator does not look at the cultural norms and say to himself, “This is all that I can do.” Instead he looks within, and allows his conscience and commitment to a purpose decide who he will become.
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?
None, all that is therein the book is self-explanatory.
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.
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.
None
Please rate the following questions on a scale from 1-10, Ten is good and One is poor.
1. How interesting was it to read? 7
2. How helpful were the contents? 9
3. How easy was it to understand? 8
4. Would you recommend it to others? 9
5. What is the overall rating you would give it? 8
How to Win Friends and Influence People
Assessment by Ijalana Olubunmi (Nigeria)
1. What is the main idea that the author is trying to convey in the book?
How to Win Friends and Influence People, according to the author is a working hand-book on Human Relations. With a driving desire, because learning is an active process. It is an action book meaning that your determination to increase your ability to deal with people should relate with the principles in this book because “my popularity, my happiness and sense of worth depend to no small extent upon my skill in dealing with people.” (I quote from the book).
2. What were the seven ideas which were personally most important to you and why? List those seven ideas followed by an explanation after each one as to why it was important to you. Use personal examples from your life.
a. Criticism is futile because it puts a person on the defensive and usually makes him strive to justify himself. Criticism is dangerous, because it wounds a person’s precious pride, hurts his sense of importance and arouses resentment. However, ninety-nine times out of hundred, people don’t criticize themselves for anything no matter how wrong it may be. That is human nature in action, wrongdoers, blaming everybody and everything but themselves. Almost eight years ago, I was a chorister in my church. So one day, our senior pastor invited the workers for a meeting in his resident, including myself. Amidst the discussion, while everyone was asked to give suggestion towards the betterment of the church. I remember there was a sister, also a choir member, who rose and said that “I am not a good singer that I deviate from my tone key to sing on any other one around me when singing.” Yes! She was just being candid but before this time, I mean in a meeting consisting of other workers, she had not told me. Today, I am not in the music department of the church but I know God has helped me discover that which I can do better. The criticism engenders can demoralize employees, family members and friends and still not correct the situation that has been condemned. Honest appreciation gets results where criticism and ridicule failed.
b. The only way I can get you to do what I want is by giving you what you want. Human nature has the deepest principle of craving to be appreciated. The desire for a feeling of importance is one of the chief distinguishing differences between mankind and the animals. This is the root of civilization. Unfortunately, it is this desire that drives many boys and girls into joining and engaging in criminal activities. Also, because how you get your feeling of importance determines your character. So the only way on earth to influence other people is to talk to them on what they want and show them how to get it.
c. The difference between appreciation and flattery is that one is sincere and the other insincere. One comes from the heart out; the other comes from the teeth out. Unfortunately, one of the most neglected virtues of our daily existence is appreciation. If all we had to do was flatter, everybody would catch on and we should all be experts in human relations. Flattery seldom works with discerning people. It is shallow, selfish and insincere. It ought to fail and usually does. Flattery will do you more harm than good. Flattery is counterfeit, and like counterfeit money, it will eventually get you into trouble if you pass it to someone who is sensitive.
d. Do you know someone you would like to change, regulate and improve? Good! But why not begin with yourself? For any substantiate change to take place in my environment with the people around me, it begins with me.
e. If we want to develop real friendship and we want others to like us, let’s put ourselves out to do things for other people – things that require time, energy, unselfishness and thoughtfulness. I met a friend recently who made his way warmly into my heart, what did he do? He sent a text to wish me a very happy birthday on my birthday and ever since then, he has been a friend. If we want to make friends, let’s greet people with animation and enthusiasm. This is simply because we are interested in others when they are interested in us. The bible says in Proverbs that “anyone who will have friends most first show himself friendly.”
f. The expression one wears on one’s face is far more important than the clothes one wears on one’s back. Happiness doesn’t depend on outward conditions. It depends on inner conditions. It isn’t what you have or who you are or where you are or what you are doing that makes you happy or unhappy. It is what you think about it – your mental attitude.
g. There is only one way under the heaven to win the best of an argument – and that is to avoid it. Nine times out of ten, an argument ends with each of the contestants more firmly convinced than ever that he is absolutely right. You can’t win an argument. You can’t because if you lose it, you lose it; and if you win it, you lose it because your opponent’s pride will be hurt, so he will resent your triumph.
3. How will these ideas or lessons help you in a practical way both in your daily personal life and in helping to create a better world? If so, how?
Learning from the book “How to Win Friends and Influence People”, now quoting in Schwab’s words “I consider my ability to arouse enthusiasm among my people, the greatest asset I possess, and the way to develop the best that is in a person is by appreciation and encouragement.” As an aspiring leader, I have understood that there is nothing else that so kills the ambitions of a person as criticisms from superiors. The charisma to gain cooperation of others resides in me and henceforth as much as I can I have made up my mind to be mean with criticism, condemnation or complaints but be approbating with appreciation.
4. Are there brief quotes from the book which really got your attention? If so, please list and comment on them.
a. The use of gentleness and friendliness is demonstrated day after day by people who have learned that a drop of honey catches more flies than a gallon of gall.
b. With malice toward none, with charity for all. Sharp criticisms and rebukes almost invariably end in futility but according to the bible, “love covereth multitude of sins.”
c. A great man shows his greatness by the way he treats little men. Any fool can criticize, condemn and complain – and most fools do. But it takes character and self-control to be understanding and forgiving. To know all is to forgive all. Instead of condemning people, let’s try to understand them.
d. I shall pass this way but once; any good, therefore, that I can do or any kindness that I can show to any human being let me do it now. Let me not defer nor neglect it, for I shall not pass this way again. The bible says “” it has been laid down for a man to die once and after death; come judgment.” Let’s cease thinking of our accomplishments, our wants. Let’s try to figure out the other person’s good points. Then forget flattery. Give honest, sincere appreciation.
e. Don’t be afraid of enemies who attack you. Be afraid of friends who flatter you. Teach me neither to proffer nor offer cheap praise – that is what flattery is all about. Flattery is telling the other person precisely what he thinks about himself.
f. The word is full of people who are grabbing and self-seeking. So the rare individual who unselfishly tries to serve others has an enormous advantage. He has little competition. People who can put themselves in the place of other people, who can understand the workings of their minds, need never worry about what the future has in store for them.
g. Education is the ability to meet life’s situations. For the great aim of education is not knowledge but 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?
None, all that that the book contains is easy to 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.
No.
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.
None
Rating
1. How interesting was it to read? 10
2. How helpful were the contents? 10
3. How easy was it to understand? 10
4. Would you recommend it to others? 10
5. What is the overall rating you would give it? 10
Giant Steps
Assessment by Ijalana Olubunmi (Nigeria)
1. What is the main idea that the author is trying to convey in the book?
The core message in the book ‘Giant Step’ is two-fold. First to inspire the reader; second to funnel that energy into measurable results by getting the reader to consistently take simple actions which will lead to giant steps forward in the quality of the life of the reader.
2. What were the seven ideas which were personally most important to you and why? List those seven ideas followed by an explanation after each one as to why it was important to you. Use personal examples from your life.
a) What ultimately determines who we become and how we end up in life is our decisions. It is in this moment of decision making that our destiny is shaped. Our decisions, not the condition of our lives determines our destiny. The floodgates can be opened by one decision, bringing joy or sorrow, prosperity or poverty, companionship or loneliness, long life or early death to the decision maker. Do something you’ve been putting off, master a new set of skills, treat people with newfound respect and compassion. Just know that all decisions have consequences. Even making no decision at all is a decision in its own way.
b) What determines the difference between acting badly or brilliantly is not based solely on one’s ability. Instead, it’s the state of one’s mind and/or body in any given moment that shapes the way one thinks, feels, behaves, and performs. If you know the secret of accessing your most powerful mental/emotional states, you can literally work wonders. In the right state of mind, ideas and abilities flow in a seemingly effortless fashion. 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.
c) Enjoy life’s “puddle”. Live with a spring in your step, a smile on your face. Make cheerfulness, outrageousness, and playfulness new priorities in your life. You’re alive! You can feel good for no reason at all! But for the gift of life. You are the source of all your emotions, so you don’t need an excuse to allow yourself to feel good. Personally, I find it difficult to do this always especially when there are pressing situations that need my attention but I’m hoping that as I progress in learning, there will be positive changes. Because the only security in life comes from knowing that every single day you are improving your self in some way. (Special Thanks to IIGL for this wonderful programme).
d) A fantastic analogy for the power of focus is racing cars. When your car begins to skid, the natural reflex is to look at the wall in an attempt to avoid it. But if you keep focusing on what you fear, that’s exactly where you’ll end up. The mind, like a powerful magnet, draws every image that comes to it and brings them to the place of reality. Job in the Bible lamented “What I feared most has come upon me”. Professional racers know that we unconsciously steer in the direction of our focus, so with their lives on the line, they turn their focus away from the wall and towards the open track. In life most people focus on what they don’t want instead of what they do. If you resist your fear, have faith, and discipline your focus, your actions will naturally take you in the direction you want.
e) Questioning our limitations is what tears down the walls – in business, in relationships, between countries. All human progress is preceded by new questions. Businesses succeed when decision makers ask the right questions about product lines or markets or strategic planning. Relationships flourish when people ask the right questions about where potential conflicts exist and how to support each other rather than tearing each other down. Communities benefit when leaders ask the right questions about what is most important and how citizens can work together toward shared goals. The commanding power of asking questions enables us to get anything we want from our data banks. Your mental computer is always ready to serve you, and whatever question you ask it, it will surely come up with an answer.
f) A belief is nothing more than a feeling of certainty about what something means. Beliefs have the power to create and the power to destroy. Because of their amazing influence on our lives, we must understand that we have to consciously decide what we’re going to believe and understand that we are not limited to our past as a source of certainty. We can turn any idea into belief if we just provide enough experiences to support it. Whichever belief we construct is the one that will be true for us. The purpose of belief is that it guides us in making decisions about how to avoid pain or gain pleasure more quickly.
g) There is a force that shapes your life. It determines what you consider possible or impossible, what you attempt or pull back from, how you think and how you interact. This force is the belief you have about who you are: your identity. We all have at least a subconscious way of describing ourselves, and this definition affects at least every part of our lives. A change in one’s personal definition will instantly change the talents one expresses, the behaviors one demonstrates, and the aspirations one pursues. It’s the filter through which every decision is made, the core belief through which one interprets all of life’s experiences.
3. How will these ideas or lessons help you in a practical way both in your daily personal life and in helping to create a better world? If so, how?
The power of reading a great book is that you start thinking like the author. You start to think as they think, feel as they feel and use imagination as they would. With the lessons that I’ve learnt in this book supporting and prompting me to stretch for the highest levels of creativity, and leadership, I have decided to take fascinating and enriching adventure with what I’ve discovered in this book and apply them to my relationship, so I can be an epitome of excellence, even to others and especially the younger girls. I am also re-setting some of my goals and making decisions to back them up with actions promptly.
4. Are there brief quotes from the book which really got your attention? If so, please list and comment on them.
a) Nothing in life has any meaning except the meaning we give it. One of the marvels of being human is our ability to fill any event with uplifting or devastating significance. But no matter what happens, we all have the capacity to create meanings that empower us.
b) Every experience provides something of value. The power to change your life is gained by changing the meaning you link to an experience. We must commit to learning from our mistakes instead of agonizing over them or else we’ll repeat them. Mistakes create experiences but our judgment will determine either the experiences are good or bad.
c) The only limit to what you can achieve is the extent of your ability to define with precision what you desire. Define your dream precisely! Nothing happens unless first a dream.
d) It’s the mind that maketh good of ill, that maketh wretch or happy, rich or poor.
e) Questions are the laser of human consciousness. You can use their power to cut through any obstacle or challenge. Quality questions make a quality life. Therefore, if we want to change the quality of our lives, we must change what we habitually ask of ourselves and others.
f) Whatever you fail to use you lose. Beware, this works for both negative and positive. Courage unused diminishes; commitment unexercised wanes: passion unexpressed dissipates.
g) The words we attach to our experience become our experience. Words can produce illness; words can kill. Carefully choose the word you use to describe your health.
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 written in the book that is not clearly stated.
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.
They are simple steps to help the reader get the most out of the book. They are also daily activities meant to run consecutively for a whole year (365 days in all).
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.
None
Please rate the following questions on a scale from 1-10, Ten is good and One is poor.
1. How interesting was it to read? 7
2. How helpful were the contents? 9
3. How easy was it to understand? 8
4. Would you recommend it to others? 9
5. What is the overall rating you would give it? 8
Non-Violent Communication
Assessment by Ijalana Olubunmi (Nigeria)
1. What is the main idea that the author is trying to convey in the book?
Communication as an indispensable prerequisite in relationships in a way that we humans were intended to relate with one another. So, NVC has trained me to observe carefully, and to be able to specify behaviors and conditions that are affecting me. Also, I learnt to identify and clearly articulate what I concretely want in any given situation.
2. What were the seven ideas which were personally most important to you and why? List those seven ideas followed by an explanation after each one as to why it was important to you. Use personal examples from your life.
a. If readers have a sincere desire to make life miserable for themselves, they might learn to compare themselves to other people. This is truthful because envy sets in when one tries to compare oneself to others, thereby this could lead to state of conflict. And where there is conflict, there will be violence physically, verbally or emotionally. So spite and strife are kinsmen. Comparison blocks compassion both for oneself and for others.
b. One kind of life – alienating communication is the use of moralistic judgments that imply wrongness or badness on the part of people who don’t act in harmony with our values. When we speak this language, we judge others and their behavior while preoccupying ourselves with who’s good, bad, normal, abnormal, responsible irresponsible, smart, ignorant etc. Few weeks ago I saw an ex-date; I actually called to see him. I’d noticed that twice that I’d seen him in the evening, he had the smell of alcohol on him and this is against my value. So I tried to talk him into seeing things from my angle by telling the harmful effect that alcohol can have on his health, so that he can stop his intake of alcohol. He had his reason for taking alcohol too – that it makes him sleep better. He was defensive and he won’t concur to all that I said. He eventually stormed out on me that night. When I got home, I received his call, he hurled out some hot words at me and those words hurt that I almost lost my sleep for two days. Maybe if I had empathized with him, he might not stop drinking immediately but maybe … one day.
c. One of the greatest reasons why most relationships crumble today like a pack of cards, why most marriages fail is because partners think the happiness that they can’t give to themselves, they will find in others or others will provide for them. Love is not denial of one’s own need to attend to the needs of the beloved. Although love is sacrificial, but this can lead to partners feeling sapped and the relationship being strained. I’m quoting from a couple who used NVC to their advantage. “I learned to listen for feelings, to express my needs, to accept answers that I didn’t always want to hear. He is not here to make me happy, nor am I here to create happiness for him. We have both learned to grow, to accept, and to love, so that we can each be fulfilled.” As a single person, yet to be married, I’ve learnt to accept myself as a complete entity – not pending for one to bring me fullness. Though, when I get married, I’ll be entering a new phase in my life, yet my spouse and I will only be working together mutually, as one to fulfill God ordained purpose.
d. Non-Violence Communication is not simply a language or a set of techniques for using words; the consciousness and intent that it embraces may be expressed through silence, a quality of presence, as well as through facial expressions and body language. Communication is a process that entails more than one body. It has to do with the encoder (message sender) and the decoder (message receiver). I have noticed that when one sends a violent message, like a stone thrown at a palm tree, it comes back to hurt the sender too. Anytime I’m annoyed and I get angry, if I dare say any harsh word at that moment, I may lose my peace for sometime and on the other if I’d acted well such relationship will be intact and I’ll be happy with myself too.
e. We are each responsible for our own thoughts, feelings and actions. Leadership is taking responsibilities. There are some languages that facilitate denial of personal responsibility for our own feelings and thoughts. e.g. “I lied to the client because the boss told me to.”
f. Our language is an imperfect instrument created by ancient and ignorant men. It is an animistic verbal communication that invites us to talk about stability and constants, simple problems and final solutions. Yet the world we try to symbolize with these words is a world of process, change, interactions, differences, dimensions, functions, relationships, growths, developing, learning, coping, complexity. So, I ask myself how come our world is dynamic but our words are static? The mismatch of our ever-changing world and our relatively static language forms is part of our problem. Being a poet, I’m fascinated by Ruth Bebermeyer song. The last stanza of the song goes;
What some of us call lazy
some call tired or easy-going,
what some of us call stupid
some just call a different knowing,
so, I’ve come to the conclusion,
it will save us all confusion
if we don’t mix up what we can see
with what is our opinion.
Because you may, I want to say also;
I know that’s only my opinion.
So, language, though created by ancient and ignorant men, can be modified and managed by enlightened people. And a way to do this is by the use of Non-Violent Communication.
g. The more faithfully you listen to the voice within you, the better you will hear what is happening outside. According to the book of John10:27, God says “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me:” Every believer should understand that God lives in us as the Holy Spirit and the Holy Spirit has been given to us as a companion and so he leads us. How? By speaking to us. A times, I’ve noticed that anytime I face situations that naturally, I should be vexed, I will just receive a gentle nudge in me, telling me to keep calm and at that point I knew it was the Holy Spirit keeping me from taking rash decision that I might regret later.
3. How will these ideas or lessons help you in a practical way both in your daily personal life and in helping to create a better world? If so, how?
I used to be a temperamental person. Some people say I’m eccentric, some say I’m strict. Until I told myself I needed change – and gradually, of course, it’s not sudden. I have started using NVC consciously in my relationships by creating room for compassion for myself and towards others in my communication.
4. Are there brief quotes from the book which really got your attention? If so, please list and comment on them.
Let us become the change we seek in the world. If we change ourselves we can change the world, and changing ourselves begins with changing our language and methods of communication. Unless we become the change we wish to see in the world, no change will ever take place.
a. Let’s shine the light of consciousness on places where we can hope to find what we are seeking. Based on a wise saying that a man without vision is like one groping in the dark for a black hat that’s not kept there. Once I know what I want in my relationships with the help of what I’ve learnt from NVC, I can focus my attention on areas where I can get what I want
b. We are dangerous when we are not conscious of our responsibility for how we behave, think, and feel. Man was created to take responsibility, not only for himself but for others. Unfortunately, few men do this days and that’s why the office of leadership is conferred on such.
c. We are never angry by what others say or do. People are disturbed not by things, but by the view they take of them. What others do may be the stimulus of our feelings but not the cause. The cause of anger is located in our own thinking. I have noticed that when I’m angry at situations or people, it’s not always what they do but my perception or my mental analysis of what they have done.
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 written in the book that is not clearly stated.
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.
Yes, there are exercises in the book. This exercises are meant to be standard for one to adhere to Nonviolent Communication
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.
Nothing
Please rate the following questions on a scale from 1-10, Ten is good and One is poor.
1. How interesting was it to read? 9
2. How helpful were the contents? 9
3. How easy was it to understand? 9
4. Would you recommend it to others? 10
5. What is the overall rating you would give it? 9
Unlimited Power
Ijalana Olubunmi (Nigeria)
1. What is the main idea that the author is trying to convey in the book?
This book is about taking the kinds of massive, focused, harmonious actions that lead to overwhelming results. In fact, it is about producing results. In one way or another, everything in this book is directed toward providing the brain with the most effective signals to empower one to take successful actions.
2. What were the seven ideas which were personally most important to you and why? List those seven ideas followed by an explanation after each one as to why it was important to you. Use personal examples from your life.
a) Power is a very emotional word. People’s responses to it are varied. I don’t think of power as something to be imposed. Power is a constant in the world. You shape your perceptions, or someone shapes them for you. You do what you want to do, or you respond to someone else’s plan for you. Ultimate power is the ability to produce the results you desire most and create value for others in the process. Power is the ability to change, to shape your perceptions, to make things work for you and not against you. Real power is shared not imposed. It’s the ability to define human needs and to fulfill them – both your needs and the needs of the people you care about. It’s the ability to direct your own personal kingdom – your own thought processes, behavior – so you produce the precise results you desire.
b) Today, one of the largest sources of power is derived from specialized knowledge. We live in a time when new ideas and movements and concepts change the world almost daily. If there’s anything that characterizes the modern world, it’s the massive, almost unimaginable, flow of information – and therefore of change. In this society, those with the information and the means to communicate it have what the king used to have – unlimited power. The exciting thing to note is that the key to power today is available to us all. In the modern world, information is the commodity of kings. Those with access to certain form of specialized knowledge can transform themselves and, in many ways our entire world.
c) Action is what produces result. Knowledge is only potential power until it comes into the hands of someone who knows how to get himself to take effective action. The greatest gift that extraordinarily successful people have over the average person is their ability to get themselves to take action. It is a gift that any of us can develop within ourselves. We have to take actions; otherwise, our desires will end up being dreams.
d) Success is not an accident and the road to success is always under construction. There is no greatness without passion to be great. People who succeed know what they want and believe that they can get it. Passion and belief help to provide the fuel, the propulsion toward excellence. A strategy is recognition that the best talents and ambitions also need to find the right avenue. Every great success knows it’s not enough to have the resources to succeed. One must use those resources in the most effective way. Values are specific belief systems we have about what is right and wrong for our lives. Great successes are almost always people with a clear fundamental sense about what really matters, a fundamental moral grounding, a sense of who they are and why they do what they do. Great success is inseparable from the physical, intellectual, and spiritual energy that allows us to make the most of what we have. Nearly all successful people have in common an extraordinary power to bond with others, the ability to connect with and develop rapport with people from a variety of backgrounds and beliefs. The greatest success is not on the stage of the world. It is in the deepest recesses of your own heart. The way we communicate with others and the way we communicate with ourselves ultimately determine the quality of our lives. People who succeed in life are those who have learned how to take any challenge that life gives them and communicate that experience to themselves in a way that causes them to successfully change things. People who fail take the adversities of life and accept them as limitations.
e) The movers and shakers of the world are often professional modelers – people who have mastered the art of learning everything they can by following other people’s experience rather than their own. They know how to save the one commodity none of us ever get enough of – time. To model excellence, you should become a detective, an investigator, someone who asks lots of questions and tracks down all the clues to what produces excellence. Building from the successes of others is one of the fundamental aspects of most learning.
f) A state can be defined as the sum of the millions of neurological processes happening within us, in other words, the sum total of our experience at any moment in time. The difference between those who fail to achieve their goals in life and those who succeed is the difference between those who cannot put themselves in a supportive state and those who can consistently put themselves in a state that supports them in their achievements. Understanding state is the key to understanding change and achieving excellence. Our behavior is the result of the state we’re in. The first key to directing your state and producing desired results in life is to learn to effectively run your brain.
g) No matter how terrible a situation is, you can represent it in a way that empowers you. Since we don’t know how things really are, but only how we represent them to ourselves, why not represent them in a way that empowers ourselves and others, rather than creating limitations? The key to doing this successfully is memory management – the forming of representations that consistently create the most empowering states for individuals. In any experience you have, you have many things you can focus on.
3. How will these ideas or lessons help you in a practical way both in your daily personal life and in helping to create a better world? If so, how?
These ideas have helped to widen my belief system and change some of my approaches to success. Now that I have also learnt about modeling, I’m expecting myself to watchfully make a selection of models – that can influence me to get positive result from life’s experiences. Do some follow-up on them and learn from their experiences. So, I can turn out to be an excellent model to others too – especially young girls.
4. Are there brief quotes from the book which really got your attention? If so, please list and comment on them.
a) There is only one success – to be able to spend your life in your own way. What do you want? What do the people you love and care about want? Powerful tools aren’t much use if you don’t have a good idea what you want to use them for. It’s just like a 2 year old dude getting his hands on his father’s pistol; the guy will only think it’s a toy and God forbids that he pulls the trigger.
b) The mind in its own place and itself can make a heaven of hell, a hell of heaven. The world we live in is the world we choose to live in, whether consciously or unconsciously. If we choose bliss, that’s what we get. If we choose misery, we get that too.
c) Our doubts are traitors, and make us lose the good we oft might win, by fearing to attempt. Winners, leaders, masters – people with personal power – all understand that if you try something and do not get the outcome you want, it’s simply feedback. You use that information to make finer distinctions about what you need to do to produce the results you desire.
d) Whatever happens, take responsibility. Another attribute great leaders and achievers have in common is that they operate from the belief that they create the world. If you don’t believe that you’re creating your world, whether it is your successes or your failures, then you are at the mercy of your circumstances. Things just happen to you. You’re an object not a subject.
e) If you don’t like how you feel, change what you represent to yourself. It’s that simple! For if you change the structure of how you represent things to yourself, you will change how you feel about it and thus change what is true in your experience of life. How do you fall in love? One of the most important perceptual ingredients of falling in love is associating with all the things you love about a person and dissociating from the things you don’t. You’re totally associated with a few elements of another person that you find intoxicating. You’re not even aware, in that moment, at least, of that person’s faults. And also what ruins relationship is associating with the unpleasant experiences in that person while you dissociate from the pleasant ones you’ve shared.
f) Thinking is the hardest work there is, which is the probable reason why so few engage in it. One of the reasons most people don’t do well in life is because success is usually disguised behind hard work. And goal setting, or outcome development, is hard work. It’s been said that there are only two pains in life, the pain of regret and the pain of discipline, and that of discipline weighs ounces while regret weighs tons.
g) There is no expedient to which a man will not go to avoid the real labor of thinking. Making an assumption is the mark of a lazy communicator. It’s one of the most dangerous things you can do in dealing with others.
h) Winning starts with beginning. A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. You can’t hit a target if you don’t know what it is. Limited goals create limited lives. So stretch yourself as far as you want in setting your goals. If you don’t know how you’ll know when you have achieved your goal, you may already have it. You can be winning and feel like you’re losing if you don’t keep score.
i) The chemist who can extract from his heart’s elements of compassion, respect, longing, patience, regret, surprise, and forgiveness and compound them into one can create that atom which is called love. If you could only love enough, you could be the most powerful person in the 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 written in the book that is not clearly stated.
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.
Yes, there are exercises for the reader. The exercises contained in the book are quite useful.
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.
Nothing
Please rate the following questions on a scale from 1-10, Ten is good and One is poor.
1. How interesting was it to read? 9
2. How helpful were the contents? 9
3. How easy was it to understand? 9
4. Would you recommend it to others? 10
5. What is the overall rating you would give it? 9
The Power of Intention
Assessment by Ijalana Olubunmi (Nigeria)
1. What is the main idea that the author is trying to convey in the book?
In this book, Author Wayne W. Dyer explained Intention as a force in the universe that allows the act of creation to take place. This book explores intention not as something one does but as an energy that we are all part of. It simply looked at intention as a field of energy one can access to begin co-creating one’s life.
2. What were the seven ideas which were personally most important to you and why? List those seven ideas followed by an explanation after each one as to why it was important to you. Use personal examples from your life.
a. Viewing Intention from a new perspective. I now understand Intention as something much greater than a determined ego or individual will. Intent is a force that exists in the universe; it is not just something we do. If you’ve ever felt inspired by a purpose or calling, you know the feeling of spirit working through you. Inspired is some authors’ word for in-spirited. It provides access to dormant forces at key times in life when one needs assistance to achieve an inner burning desire.
b. The Location of the Field called Intention. Some prominent researchers believe that our intelligence, creativity and imagination interact with the energy field of intention rather than being thoughts or elements in our brain. The answer to where is this field? Is: Intention is a power that’s present everywhere as a field of energy; it isn’t limited to physical development. It is the source of nonphysical (spiritual) development. There’s no place that it’s not, because everything in the universe has intention built into it. This is true for all life forms, whether it is an insect or a mountain, even a mosquito has intent built into its creation and experience. Every aspect of nature has intention built into it, and as far as we can tell, nothing in nature questions its path of intent. It’s clear to me than before that like an engine is to a car – inbuilt and without it the car won’t respond to the tunes and whims of the driver, so is my intention to my life, without this force, I can’t access the high level of nature. The Bible states that I Samuel 16:7 “…for man looks at the outward appearance but God look on the heart.”
c. There are four steps of intention mentioned this book, namely; Discipline, Wisdom, Love and Surrender. I’m going to be laying my emphasis on the third step which is ‘Love’. After disciplining the body with wisdom, and intellectually studying a task, this process of mastery involves loving what you do and doing what you love. Love is our highest word and the synonym of God. The truth is that we do not create anything alone; and that we are all creatures of God – we are made in His image. To operate like God, we have to cooperate with God by being like Him and the only way to be like Him is to love the ‘agape’ way. One of my best musical tracks is ‘God is love’ by Tonex. The song says God is love; if you wanna know love; you have to know God. In fact as Christians that’s the only commandment that our master gave us.
d. One of the things I appreciate mostly in IIGL is that most of the books that we’re given to read talk about how we can be better relationship-wise. One of the obstacles to connecting to Intention as stated in this book is Self-Importance. To a large extent I agree because according to the author, self-importance is man’s greatest enemy. What weakens him is feeling offended by the deeds and misdeeds of his fellow man. Self importance requires that one spend most of one’s life offended by something or someone. I need to let go of my need to be superior by seeing the unfolding of God in everyone. We are all equal in the eyes of God. True nobility isn’t about being better than someone else. It is about being better than I used to be. I’m not to access others on the basis of their appearance, achievements, possessions and indices of ego.
e. The best thing to give:
* Your enemy is forgiveness;
* To an opponent, tolerance;
* To a friend, your heart;
* To your child, a good example;
* To your father, deference;
* To your mother, conduct that will make her proud of you;
* To your self, respect;
* To all men, charity.
I came in contact with these words, almost 10 years ago, when I was still in the college, through what we call ‘auto’ book where people give some data about themselves. I remembered that the room I lived when I proceeded to higher institution on my wall, I had the words written on a neat paper in my hand writing beside my bed and every morning when I wake up, it was the first thing I saw. I believe that the power of intention is paradoxically experienced through what you’re willing to give to others.
f. It is my intention to be authentic and peaceful with all my relatives – even my church members. If there’s any challenge that I have now, it has to do with keeping friends. I easily make friends but I find it hard keeping them. This I think is related to some of my experiences in life but I have learnt that in order to change the nature of my relationships, I’ll have to change my mind about other people and do a somersault into the inconceivable by changing the bad ideas had conceived through experience.
g. If a friendship or partnership requires the submission of your higher original nature and dignity, it’s simply wrong. When you truly know what it is to love, as you’re loved by your Source, you won’t experience the kind of pain you did in the past when your love was unnoticed or rejected. This is one of the things I tell the teenagers I have been opportune to speak to on career and relationship that they should love themselves for who they are, so that they won’t been taken advantage of. I wrote a poem a year ago titled “Can you die for Love? The poem:
Can you die for love?
Will I shed an ocean of tears?
Will I abide in my heart an embodiment of fear?
Will I set my entire being ablaze with passion?
Will I be forever drenched in the ecstasy of the fragrant memory we shared?
Will I remember your face and grin up with smiles?
Will these feelings endure another dark night?
Deep within me I said I wont let none gaze into my heart,
I won’t trade your place for any gauge.
But can I step in the way of time
Can my soul bring to reality?
The fragments of my imagination
And with every of my deepest thought of you,
Herein lies the solution
To the puzzlement,
Can you die for me?
This expression ensued from the Bible passage; John 15:13 “Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.”
3. How will these ideas or lessons help you in a practical way both in your daily personal life and in helping to create a better world? If so, how?
The only way to make the immeasurable, indescribable force of intent work for me is to stay connected to my Source – God and always I should ensure that the connecting link between my Source and I is always active i.e. I should always be in His presence by living a holy life.
4. Are there brief quotes from the book which really got your attention? If so, please list and comment on them.
a. The law of floatation was not discovered by contemplating the sinking of things, but by contemplating the floating of things which floated naturally and then intelligently asking why they did so. The key here is ‘contemplating’, or what you’re placing your thoughts on. I’ll put it that “it’s what I think that I get”.
b. Let go of your need to have more. You’ll find yourself in a perpetual state of striving, and eliminate the possibility of ever arriving. Yet in reality, you’ve already arrived, and how you choose to use this present moment of your life is your choice. Ironically, when you stop needing more, more of what you desire seems to arrive in your life. There’s this need in every being but it is more in those people who embezzle funds meant for masses in their countries.
c. Let go of your reputation. Your reputation is not located in you. It resides in the mind of others. If you’re overly concerned with how you’re going to be perceived by everyone, then you’ve disconnected yourself from intention and allow the opinions of others to guide you.
d. It is one of the most beautiful compensations of this life that no man sincerely tries to help another without helping himself. Serve and thou shall be served. If you desire peace for others, you’ll receive peace. If you want others to feel loved, you’ll be the recipient of love. If you see beauty and worthiness in others, you’ll have the same returned to you. I’ll only give away what I have in my heart, and attract what I’m giving away.
e. Your sole business in life is to attain God-realization. All else is useless and worthless. There are no accidents. You’re here for purpose that you signed up for before you entered the word of particles and form. Many of the things that you refer to as problems result from the fact that you’re disconnected from intention and therefore unaware of your true spiritual identity.
f. God is able to provide you with every blessing in abundance. Just change the way you look at things and the things you look at will change. In my heart, I know that attracting abundance and feeling successful is possible, because, although I am not yet a millionaire but I’m not where I used to be. It’s no longer how I started. Eph 3:20“ Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think according to the power that worketh in 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?
None, all that is therein the book is self-explanatory.
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. there is no exercise contained in the book.
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.
None
Please rate the following questions on a scale from 1-10, Ten is good and One is poor.
1. How interesting was it to read? 7
2. How helpful were the contents? 9
3. How easy was it to understand? 8
4. Would you recommend it to others? 9
5. What is the overall rating you would give it? 8
Goal Setting 101
Assessment by Ijalana Olubunmi (Nigeria)
1. What is the main idea that the author is trying to convey in the book?
‘Goal Setting 101’addresses the fundamentals of setting and achieving a goal. The main objective of the writer was to put the cookies of understanding on the lower shelf, within reach of anyone at whatever age. The book is simply about achieving one’s goals.
2. What were the seven ideas which were personally most important to you and why? List those seven ideas followed by an explanation after each one as to why it was important to you. Use personal examples from your life.
a. In this book, a goal is defined as an end toward which one directs specific effort. In this frame, the ‘end’ is an exact and tangible result one wants and for which one is willing to expend effort in order to achieve. The amount and intensity of effort provided is always dependent on the individual and how important the goal is to that person. I have found out that some goals that I have set for my life in the past; some have come to reality while some have fizzled away depending on the intensity of the effort with which I pursue those goals. One of those goals is my academics, having made up my mind to go into arts and communication away from the field of sciences (which I have being doing since my college), although it appeared like an assiduous task but with the help of goal setting, today, I am attaining that height gradually.
b. Goals establish direction for one’s life. If you never set a goal, how do you know where you are going? Like I’d mentioned earlier, it’s with the assistance of goal setting that I have been able to establish the discipline that is well-suited for me. Of course, if I’d learnt this early enough maybe I’d have a different story but I was able to re-direct my focus and channel my energy towards my new goal because my mind is applied to what I want and where I want to be in the future both now and tomorrow. Goals identify results. I have also been able to measure my progress by considering what I have on the table of my mind and what I have as reality, this has also helped me to reflect on what to do next. Goals challenge you to grow. The goals that I have set for myself academically and career-wise have been like an energizer or a lubricant to the wheel of my pursuit in life. These goals keep pushing me into motion.
c. Develop a vision. A vision is a way of seeing or conceiving what you want to create or achieve. What you cannot see, you cannot become and what you cannot conceive, you cannot bring forth. How can one plan without having a vision of what to plan – what do you want for your life? Knowing that I want to be an English major has gone a long way to help me in my preparation for the life ahead of me in the field of communication and also in my decision making, which is the major reason why I have taken up the course in Mass Communication presently. how to plan, when to plan, where to do the planning, who to plan with – there are some people who are ‘dream-killers’, people who are pessimistic, if one shares one’s goal with such people, like Joseph’s brothers, they may also have antagonizing plans for you, while there are some people that can be tagged ‘destiny helpers’, these people are so concerned about the fulfillment of goals shared with them because they believe in the goals. Although when I was going to change my field, it was a personal decision, but I will commend the effort of my Father’s friend – a man whom I call ‘daddy’ because he has indefatigably played this role in my life – Mr. ’Leye Adejuyigbe and the CEO of the company where I work presently – Pastor Wale Akinyanmi. These 2 figures have contributed immensely to the realization of my academic and career goals. They understood, shared and accepted my goals.
d. If I will analyze my academic and career goals according to the anatomy of goal provided in this which states that; ‘what’ is the goal, which provides direction; the ‘why’ is the set of personal benefits, which provides fuel to reach the goal; the ‘how’ is the map that provides the mile markers for achievement. My goal is to become a force to be reckoned with in the line of English Language. The reason for this is that is where my gift lies and I have passion for it. One of the road map to actualizing this goal is that I’m presently studying Mass Communication.
e. Write down your goals. Writing something down is the first step toward achieving it. There’s something about putting something down on paper that forces you to get down to specifics. It’s harder to deceive yourself or somebody else when your idea is exposed on paper. This is a principle that I have learnt a long time ago and it has worked for me and for others that I have introduced to it. I have learnt that the probability of achieving a goal is heightened when the goal is expressed on paper. Writing down one’s goals helps to bring the future to present. The Bible acknowledged this in Habakkuk 2:2-3 And the LORD answered me, and said, write the vision, and make it plain upon tables, that he may run that readeth it. For the vision is yet for an appointed time, but at the end it shall speak, and not lie: though it tarry, wait for it; because it will surely come, it will not tarry. KJV
f. The first of personal leadership is to act like a leader. I have to lead myself in the direction of my goals because no one else will do the job for me. Here, I have to make myself a leader because here, my goal is the subject of matter. I must know that the primary criterion of any leader is the ability to achieve the goal, whatever it may be. This must be a push for me to lead on and build my life on a permanent record of accomplishment.
g. Implementing the goals now and perfecting them later. There can never be a better time to start than now because delay can be dangerous. Opportunities are often lost while waiting for perfect conditions.
3. How will these ideas or lessons help you in a practical way both in your daily personal life and in helping to create a better world? If so, how?
Considering that my goals in life define what I am now and what I will turn out to be, I have learnt to set my goals aright by planning, preparing and implementing my goals through focus.
4. Are there brief quotes from the book which really got your attention? If so, please list and comment on them.
a. In any competitive enterprise, action is preferable to inaction. One may have to be aggressive to be progressive by not giving a chance for one’s fears or competition to pin one down. The winning attitude is one of movement and progress, not digging in and holding ground.
b. Nothing of any lasting value was ever created by someone who was reasonable. It is the unreasonable people, those discontented with the status quo, the dreamers and visionaries who nevertheless have their feet planted firmly on solid ground who improve people’s lives and advance society. Reasonable people can talk themselves out of anything, no matter how great the merit of the goal. Successful people do what unsuccessful people simply won’t or can’t do. And in so doing, they frequently achieve the impossible.
c. Examine your speech! You can and will inspire confidence with your words and vocal tone. An effective goal setter will express himself/herself confidently without doubt. I must be optimistic always in my speech.
d. Only by stretching do we grow. If you push the limits, you define new limits. I am capable of producing and achieving more than I believe possible. But I must also know my limits to avoid counter productivity.
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 think the expressions in the book are simple and clearly stated but I will like to state that in goal setting, one cannot over-emphasize the place of the sovereignty – God. We must acknowledge that He made us and that He has plans for our lives. This should make us to make Him first on our priority list.
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.
I’ll still have to take my time to study and do them.
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.
Nothing
Please rate the following questions on a scale from 1-10, Ten is good and One is poor.
1. How interesting was it to read? 9
2. How helpful were the contents? 10
3. How easy was it to understand? 9
4. Would you recommend it to others? 10
5. What is the overall rating you would give it? 10