Obioha Ebere Mary-Jane – Assessments

As a Man Thinketh
Assessment by Obioha Ebere Mary-Jane (Nigeria)

1. What is the main idea the author is trying to convey?

The author is basically talking about how our mindset affects our everyday life. The way we think goes a long way in affecting our actions and the outcomes of our lives. Our thought life determines the outcome of our lives. Nothing happens to us by chance, we have a way of affecting our lives through our perception as influenced by our thoughts.

2. What are the seven ideas which are personally most important to you and why? List these seven ideas followed by an explanation after each one as to why it is important to you. Use personal examples from your own life.

i. As a man thinketh in his heart, so is he

This is a basic truth even from the Holy bible. What we conceive is what we actually become. What you think of yourself is who you eventually become. You cannot be more than you think of yourself. You have a greater part to play through your thoughts in what you make out of your life. If you think evil in your heart, you will end up being an evil person. If you think pervert thoughts, lust, immorality, that is who you are, our thoughts affect our routines which in turn form our habits which in the long run defines our personality. A pervert didn’t just wake up to be one; it always starts from a thought. For instance when I was in school, I have always imagined working in a food company and I told my friends then and guess what today I am working in a food company. We become what we think of ourselves over-time. Hence there is a need for us to think good thoughts. Healthy thoughts and thoughts of peace. A good man will surely have noble thoughts.

ii. Circumstances do not make a man, it reveals him to himself

I believe we are not defined by our circumstances as some people do believe so they blame their circumstances for their failures. When we are faced with challenges, it only brings out the real us and even makes us more self -aware. Things you never thought you could be able to do, you see yourself doing them and even much more. Just like silver is made to pass through fire before its beauty comes out, so it is with humans. We go through issues or challenges that bring out our inner beauty and strength. When we understand this, we will face challenges with a growth mindset. We will us every circumstance as a learning platform and also a discovery channel. A point came in my life where I had to work at nights and work under a supposed difficult boss, it wasn’t a rosy period of my life but I learnt more about myself. I didn’t know I could stay up all night without dozing off and I didn’t know I had good interpersonal skills which I used with my boss. By the time I was to round off the rotation and my work with my boss then, I was pleased with me because I had built a lasting relationship with my boss, learnt more about my problem solving skills, time management, gained more confidence on the job as working those night shifts I encountered challenges that I was able to handle and resolve. Most times, as humans we tend to shy away from unfavorable circumstances but those are times when we discover ourselves. Also one time in my life I had to do a marketing job; following my kind of personality, I won’t even opt for such kind of job but I did and l learnt more of myself. I wasn’t so good in it obviously because I left it but I learnt one or two thing on how to be persuasive and how to appeal to the emotions of your customers. Now my present job entails me working with customers too but resolving complaints. Now the skills I learnt during my marketing job are been put to use in this role as it is highly needed. In essence, circumstances truly reveal the some-what hidden part of us.

iii. The effect of thought on health and body

Disease and health are rooted in our thoughts. A happy man or woman will always be healthy even if the person has a terminal disease such as cancer or AIDS. A cheerful soul will show in our countenance. Anger and sorrow make us age quickly and makes us vulnerable to all kind of sickness. Strong, pure and happy thoughts build up the body in vigor and grace. When we allow bitterness, envy, jealousy rob us of the joy we should experience, we end up cheating ourselves. Whenever I am bitter or angry over something or someone, I usually do have chest pain and headache. I did not take not of this at first but after repeated patterns, I had to caution myself and stop been bitter. I also heard stories of people going through some terminal diseases and they were not getting any better, the moment they begin to have faith and think positively about themselves, they were able to live longer than the sickness would have allowed them to. I once had a cousin who was a sickler, very cheerful guy, never felt sick. You will not know he is a sickler except for his yellow eyes. He even crossed the dangerous years of those with sickle cell. All was working fine for him till he lost his sister who was a sickler too; he lost hope totally, went into depression and died eventually died few months after his sister. That is how bad our health can go if we think wrongly. Let us learn to embrace this life with joy and gladness of heart irrespective of whatever situation we find ourselves in. even if you have been hurt by somebody, let us not allow that rob us of true joy and peace.

iv. Thought and purpose

This to mean lays emphasis that a successful man will not live his life to chances. The quote ‘what will be will be’ has made more people lazy and busy doing wishful thinking. You have to be purposeful in your thoughts. It is just like saying you want to do well academically and you do not take out time to read your book. We cannot afford to leave our lives to chances and other happenings if we ever want to make an impact in life. When I was in the higher institution, I knew the purpose why I was there and so I made conscious effort to achieve that purpose. Thought allied fearlessly with purpose becomes creative force to do something great. We have to do away with laziness, fear, doubt, skepticism in our thoughts. We need to be optimistic and practical. Our life is a series of thought that has been processed over time and eventually playing out, we act out our thoughts subconsciously.

v. Visions and Ideals

To desire is to obtain, to aspire is to achieve. The great achievers in this world are those who have dared to dream and go further by acting upon their dream. We should not be afraid to dream big irrespective of our present circumstance. We build the kind of life we want to live through our dreams. For you to be a good leader, you need to be someone that has vision. A visionary leader will have a greater influence on his followers because they have something tangible to hold on to and he will also make an impact during his tenure. He who is guided by no vision or dream will just walk aimlessly throughout life. Most times, what inhibits us from dreaming is the fact that we are trying to figure out how it will come to pass considering our present situation, to dream big, you have to be very creative and optimistic and also fearless. There is also a thin line between dreaming big and building castles in the air, we need to know when we are way out of line and bring ourselves to reality. It takes a pragmatic leader to be a visionary person. It guides you in your everyday work and task. My dream and vision in life has subconsciously shaped every step and decision I make in my everyday life.

vi. Though factor in achievement

If you think you can, you can. If you think you cannot, you cannot. Either ways, it is up to you to believe you can or not. Our achievement is directly dependent on how we think of ourselves. Just like in the holy bible; the account of the spies sent to spy a land. Everyone except two guys came back with a negative report. The two guys that had a good report were able to go into the Promised Land. Our achievements are tied to our thoughts, the earlier we start thinking of how successful we can be, the better will be our achievements. When I was in primary school, I was always coming 5th in class till I made up my mind and believed I could do better. The next term I came out 3rd after which I took the 1st position till I left primary school. Sometimes we are too scared to take the first step but the moment we do, we achieve much more than we thought we could. So in essence it is only when we step out of our comfort zone that we know how much we can achieve, but first we have to believe in our abilities. Be your first cheer leader, only then can you have confidence. Most people that have made it in life never knew they could, they did not have the blue print of how it was going to work but they just believed they could make a difference. That is the first step to great achievements.

vii. Serenity

Calmness of mind is a virtue desired by many but not everyone can pay the price. Calmness is a disposition not necessarily because everything is working out fine. A man of knowledge will be calm because he knows with his thought he can change his circumstances to work for his good. When we fret and worry, it does not help. It only compounds our problem.

3. How will these ideas or lessons help you in a practical way, both in your daily personal life and in helping you to create a better world? If so, how?

These ideas will help e become more conscious of my thought life and pattern. I now have to be more conscious of what I think and improve my perception of myself.
It will also help me to think better of others because it is only when I have a better perception of me that I can think better of others. Also I now have to create a mental picture of my vision and carry it along. I have to ensure I am synced with my vision even in my everyday task so I won’t lose track of my life. Also I have a lot to learn from being calm. My ability to control my emotions in the heat of anger and rage will go a long way to help my relationship with people at work and at home and even in romantic relationship. I need to learn to be still and think first before I act.

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.

“If you would protect your body, guard your mind. If you will renew your body, beautify your mind. Thoughts of malice, envy, disappointment, despondency, rob the body of its health and grace. A sour face does not come by chance; it is made by our thoughts. Wrinkles that mar are drawn by folly, passion and pride.”

This quote reminds me that it is up to me to live a fulfilling life. The way I lay my bed so I lie on it. Also just like the Holy-bible says, guard your heart with all diligence because out of it proceeds the issues of life. My life is a sum of my thought life, so to make it in life; my thought pattern has to be top-notch.

5. Is there anything in the book that you do not understand or are unclear about or are there ideas which you disagree with and if so why?

No.

6. Did the book contain exercises for the reader to complete? If so, did you complete the exercises and did you find them helpful?

No exercise to complete

7. Was there anything you read in the book that you would like to comment on that was not covered in the previous questions? If so, please comment.

The questions covered all that is written in the book.

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

 

 

Jonathan Livingston Seagull
Assessment by Obioha Ebere Mary-Jane (Nigeria)

1. What is the main idea the author is trying to convey?

The main idea the writer is trying to convey is that as human beings, we all have an inner desire to seek to know more, explore our world just like the seagull Jonathan. Sometimes, we repress this desire but it still surfaces in our everyday life. We are always curious, we want to know why something is working or is not working. This has actually given birth to so many innovations in our world today. The quest for knowledge is the reason while we have schools. Education has somehow helped to broaden the quest for knowledge and also given some direction to the search for knowledge.

2. What are the seven ideas which are personally most important to you and why? List these seven ideas followed by an explanation after each one as to why it is important to you. Use personal examples from your own life

i. We should not just exist in this life

Just like Jonathan seagull, we should not just live our lives like we merely exist, there is more to life than just waking up, meeting our basic needs. Those are the essentials of life but we need to dive deeper to get the juice out of life. The quest and search for knowledge should be paramount to us if we want to ever make an impact in this life. For you to be a success in life, you need to know what others do not know. Mediocre are generally those that exist in life, they just pass through life. Life has no meaning to them, they don’t see themselves doing more than that which they think is humanly possible.

ii. The only limitation we have is the one we create for ourselves

If we think we can make it, we can. There is no limitation or barrier that we cannot break forth, it is just a mindset. Jonathan seagull thought he could not fly higher because his wings were not made for such kind of flight, but on several attempts, he began to realize the potential he carried inside of him. He now learnt how to move with the tides.

iii. Be ready to Fail

We should be ready to fail while trying to succeed: most times as humans, we are afraid to fail more than the desire to succeed so we end up not even trying at all. Such kind of life will not help us to make it in life hence we end up as mediocre. Furthermore when we fail, we blame every other thing or person but ourselves for the failure. We are always the victim and hence we want self-pity. For you to be a success, you will fail several times. The guy that invented electricity tried for as many times as possible before he could get it. Each time you fail, there is a lesson to learn from that failure which you will use for your next trial. If the seagull did not keep on trying even after several failed attempts, he would not have succeeded

iv. We should be ready to make some painful sacrifices for us to make it in life

A point came when the seagull was exiled because of his quest for knowledge. He could have given up then, but he went on. That did not deter him rather it stirred him up to learn more. He knew there was more to life than just feeding and that more was what he wanted to find out. He was not satisfied with the routine kind of life his family or species were used to. He was tagged the different one because he did not have the same mindset as the rest of the clan. He had to be sent out of the clan because nobody else believed his philosophy. Sometimes, in life people are not convinced with our principles and the way we go about living our life, we make sacrifices by letting go of such people even if they are family as they cannot help you actualize your dream at that point. Those sacrifices cause us pain but in the long run, they are actually for the good of all and sundry

v. Success

The successful ones are usually alone and few: the seagulls that made it to that point in their life where they know there is more to life were actually very few. The ground floor is always full with people but at the top there are only few. It takes a lot to get to the top. Many a times, people are not willing to go that far. They rather just stay down and continue to exist.

vi. Never get tired of learning

Jonathan even after knowing that he can do so much acrobatics with his wings was not still tired of learning more. When he saw someone that was far better than he was, he sat down to learn from him and he learnt fast because he learnt with his whole heart. As humans, we should never be complacent with our present level if we want to continue to succeed in life. We must always seek to know more. The moment we shit our heart to knowledge, we stop growing and start dying.

vii. Ensure you pass the knowledge to someone too

For you to be called a successful person, you need to be able to pass the knowledge you have acquired over your life time to someone, be a mentor or a role model. Ensure someone benefits from your well of knowledge. Be like a flowing river of knowledge. Do not just store up your wisdom, you should not die with all you know, impact it into the life of someone else, the next generation.

3. How will these ideas or lessons help you in a practical way, both in your daily personal life and in helping you to create a better world? If so, how?

The lessons learnt from this book will help me see life as a place to explore. I will not just live my life because I want to live. I will ensure I imbibe an inquisitive nature at work and everywhere around me.

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.

“The gull sees farthest who flies highest.”

This means the higher you go in life, the more clearly the picture seems to you.

5. Is there anything in the book that you do not understand or are unclear about or are there ideas which you disagree with and if so why?

No.

6. Did the book contain exercises for the reader to complete? If so, did you complete the exercises and did you find them helpful?

No exercises to complete.

7. Was there anything you read in the book that you would like to comment on that was not covered in the previous questions? If so, please comment.

The questions covered all that is written in the book.

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

Keys to Success
Assessment by Ebere Obioha Mary Jane (Nigeria)

1. What is the main idea the author is trying to convey?

The main idea the writer is trying to convey is that as human beings, we can achieve success in anything we do. It is a practical and revealing book; the seventeen principles are the essence of the action and attitudes of everyone who has ever had a lasting accomplishment. If you make them your actions and attitudes, you will realize every one of your worthwhile goals.

2. What are the seven ideas which are personally most important to you and why? List these seven ideas followed by an explanation after each one as to why it is important to you. Use personal examples from your own life

i. Definiteness of Purpose

This is the starting point of all achievement; we need to have a sense of where we are going. This is one thing that is lacking amongst human, because most people never really define their goals and start working towards achieving them. Definiteness of purpose encourages you to specialize, and specialization leads to perfection. One’s success in life will depend a great deal on one’s ability to know much about a specific area and to perform exceptionally within it. It also makes you aware of opportunities related to your major purpose so you don’t have to expend energy on what is not related to your purpose or cannot help you achieve your goals. It also helps you develop confidence in your own integrity and character, which attracts favorable attention from others and inspire their co-operation. The biggest for me is that when you have definiteness of purpose, you have faith on yourself. It makes your mind positive and frees it from the limitations of doubt, discouragement, indecision and procrastination. These limitations are some of the greatest roadblocks you will ever face. So this faith will help combat them and makes the journey to achieving your goals smoother.

ii. Establish a Mastermind Alliance

No one has ever attained success in anything without applying the mastermind principle. As it is often said, no man is an island, all truly great minds have been reinforced through contact with others that allowed them to grow and expand. For the mastermind alliance principle to work, you first need to have a purpose and also select people who will help you attain your goal. This is a crucial decision as it has a huge impact in the whole principle. The other quality is the ability to work in a spirit of harmony with others. Without harmony your alliance will falter, perhaps not right away but at some crucial moment when everything is about to be lost or won. Also, you have to determine at the outset what rewards you are offering in return for the work of others. A little appreciation will go a long way to foster harmony and hard-work among your team members. We also have to be fair and just. Everyone should also be agreed on the division of benefits and profits.

iii. Develop a positive mental attitude

A positive mental attitude will go a long way to help you be successful. Through PMA, you can cause others to co-operate with you and also help you. It gives you definiteness of purpose too. The good thing is that with PMA, you can overcome every setback and disappointment that comes your way. Using myself as an example; recently my role in my company was scrapped off and I was almost retrenched until another role was offered to me. In the midst of all these I maintained a positive attitude and that made it hard for people to start pitying me or make me feel like a victim. People around me thought I was so strong but I thought to myself that there is a reason this is happening and I will ensure it turns out for my good. I made up my mind that I won’t have the victim mentality rather I will be a victor in the situation. This has helped me not feel depressed or sad even if the urge comes sometimes.

iv. Enforce Self-discipline

With self-discipline, you learn to think before you act. If your emotions are not controlled, they can become wild and cause fatal failure for the individual. Discipline is needed to checkmate your emotions. You must control your emotions but do not abolish them cause they are like the driving force of your life. Your negative emotions can also be directed to add meaning to your life. Emotion without reason is a dreadful enemy. Hardly will you see a successful man that is not disciplined. The mind is made up of 6 compartments; ego, emotions, reason, conscience, imagination and memory; with self-discipline, you co-ordinate these six departments and put them under control. Self-discipline helps you look forward to the future rather than dwelling in past mistakes. Closing the doors of fear and worry allows you open the doors of hope and faith. Self-discipline should be used to control your emotions so your sub-consciousness can work for you and not against you. With self-discipline, I tend not to regret any decision I have made in the past. I only learn from my mistakes and move on. This is a very hard task because as humans we always want to lame someone but ourselves for our decisions or mistakes, but if it is practiced regularly, it becomes much easier for us which I have started practicing.

v. Think Accurately

Our mind is a plot of land that if well cultivated can become a productive and beautiful garden. Our thoughts have power to mold or break us, that is why scriptures says “As a man thinketh in his heart, so is he.” You can never achieve anything without thinking accurately. As an accurate thinker, you have to scrutinize every idea or thought. Before you accept anyone’s statement, ensure you understand the motive behind the statement. Although most of our thinking is influenced by people and our environment but we must take conscious steps to ensure that what we take in is filtered and controlled. Your thought is the only thing you have complete control over.

vi. Maintain sound health

There is a need to establish good, well-balanced health habits in work, play, rest, nourishment and study. A sound mind is a healthy mind. Eating well and rightly are keys to maintaining a sound health. Sound health is beyond the body alone, our mind also needs to be sound; we need to avoid negative forces because such leads to depression which will further deteriorate our health. This is also where having a positive mental attitude will help out as it will show forth in your countenance.

vii. Control your attention

This is needed to help you organize power. It is also the highest form of discipline. The mind never remains inactive even in sleep which is why we must take note of what controls our attention. If we can control our attention, we can be able to control every other aspect of our lives.

3. How will these ideas or lessons help you in a practical way, both in your daily personal life and in helping you to create a better world? If so, how?

The lessons learned from this book will help me see my life with definite purpose and also how to achieve my goals. I now understand as much as I love to do things on my own, I need master mind alliance to succeed. No man is an island of his own. I also need self-discipline and positive mental attitude to be a success in life. For me, reading this book has made me understand that success is intentional. We chart the course of our success story by ourselves, and that chart I have drawn for my success story.

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.

“Emotion without reason is a dreadful enemy.”

This is important to me because I have to learn how to make decisions not merely on my emotions as it is fatal, even when it comes to marital decisions. I have a boyfriend that has a genotype AC just like me, hence we cannot marry. Sometimes, my emotions want me to wave the genotype incompatibility off, and marry the guy but I know within myself that the decision is fatal hence I won’t make it.

5. Is there anything in the book that you do not understand or are unclear about or are there ideas which you disagree with and if so why?

No.

6. Did the book contain exercises for the reader to complete? If so, did you complete the exercises and did you find them helpful?

No exercise to complete.

7. Was there anything you read in the book that you would like to comment on that was not covered in the previous questions? If so, please comment.

The questions covered all that is written in the book.

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? 7
B. How helpful were the contents? 9
C. How easy was it to understand? 8
D. Would you recommend it to others? 10
E. What is the overall rating you would give it? 9

PsychoCybernetics
Assessment by Mary Jane Obioha (Nigeria)

1. What is the main idea that the author is trying to convey in the book?

The main idea the writer is passing across is the power of self image and how it affects our success in life. Creating a better self image doesn’t change who we are or give us more strength; it rather helps us to utilize the God given abilities in us. When we understand and accept ourselves for who we are and not because of our jobs, money or affluence, we become better humans and also capable of achieving great feats because we know our capabilities and we derive strength from our inner man. We should also learn to differentiate between ourselves and our actions. The mere fact that we made a mistake now does not mean we are a mistake. Our lives are not perfect we keep moving towards perfection just like the holy bible says the part of the righteous is like a shining light that keeps shining onto a perfect day. In this world we keep transforming and evolving hence there is a need to have the right self image else we will keep messing up with our lives and live in shame.

2. What were the seven ideas which were personally most important to you and why? List these seven ideas followed by an explanation after each one as to why it was important to you. Use personal examples from your own life.

i. Self image is important

The way you see yourself matters a lot on how you value you. Your self image is directly proportional to your self esteem. I used to see myself as one very thin girl as my body has refused to add weight and I was always called “Lepa” meaning thin girl. It affected my self esteem as I didn’t see myself as being beautiful until recently I got to start appreciating my being. That has actually helped me see my self as a beautiful lady.

ii. Discover the success mechanism within you.

Man is more than a creature, he is a creator. I can drive my own success by my imaginations. Every human being has been engineered for success by his creator. I.must learn to trust my creative mechanism to do its job rather than being scared. This is so important to me as I am going to switch roles in a couple of days and I am still not sure of my self. I need to let my creative self excel in this new field rather than allow self doubt to kill all creativity inside of me.

iii. Dehypnotize yourself from false beliefs

An idea accepted as truth from any source can actually hypnotize you and keep you bound as long as you believe it whole heartedly. The negative beliefs keep us from making use of our strengths. Within us is the power to do what so
ever we think we can do to be happy and successful, it is just for us to believe. These negative feelings come as a result of us judging ourselves against someone else standard failing to realize we are uniquely different.

iv. How to utilize the power of rational thinking

We should not let our past determine our future, it will only hold us ransom and stop us from achieving great feats. Like for me I’ve made some decisions in the past that were awful, but reading this book has made me realize I have to learn from my mistakes, forget the past and forge ahead. It is time for me to re-evaluate my beliefs. We have to deal primarily with thoughts and thought habits

v. Relax and let your success mechanism work for you

We worry too much in this present age because we do not know the creator has in us in-built creative mechanisms. Ideas don’t come in a tense environment. I remember one time I had some problems on data analysis and I tried to use my conscious brain but it didn’t work. While I was washing, I got the inspiration and I was over-joyed. Our creative mechanism cannot work tomorrow, it is for the present.

vi. You can acquire the habit of success

Most crimes are rooted in the state if unhappiness. Happiness is a state of the mind. Happiness does not lie in the future but in the present. We need to get rid of that idea that your next job will.bring you Happiness. You should be happy wherever you are. That is what true happiness is about. Happiness is a mental attitude which can be cultivated and developed. You can be happier if you decide not to add resentment and self
pity to your misfortune. The true cause of unhappiness is not that we lost our money or got disappointed but it is the fact that we have lost the zeal to pursue our goal aggressively. This is so me. Recently I got rejection mails from the schools I applied you for graduate programs. Now I understand my unhappiness is because I have lost the zeal to pursue my graduate studies not just because I didn’t get the admissions.

vii. How to acquire ingredients of a successful personality.

This is embedded in the word S.U.C.C.E.S.S: Sense of direction; Understanding; Courage; Charity; Esteem; Self confidence; Self Acceptance. For you to build a success personality, you need to have a goal and sense of direction. We should always have something we are looking forward to, only through that can we keep our eyes on the ball. I remember when I was working towards a promotion o got this year, I always worked towards it and now that I have it I need to set new goals to work with so I don’t feel tired and depressed. You need to understand your situation and seek the truth after which you act with courage towards your goal. Only by actions can your dreams be turned into realities. Like I have to goal of studying abroad now I need to understand what it takes and if I’m qualified for the course I want to study taking into cognizance my career path and research experiences since it is a graduate course. After this I need to find the courage to start application because this involves finance and brain work. Only through this can I achieve my goal of leaving the country. We also need to show ourselves love be kind to your self and this can only happen when we have a healthy self esteem and we have come to accept ourselves for who we are and not for who we have become. My self confidence will breed on my past successes. Like for instance in this my new role I cannot say I have the confidence I think I need for the job because I’m still green in the area and I have a lot of things yet to understand but as the day goes by I’m learning and my confidence level is going up. These are the ingredients that we need to have a success personality. Success is contagious but it is also personal. We need to make up our mind to be a success and carry the success image as we go about our daily walk

3. How will these ideas or lessons help you in a practical way, both in your daily personal life and in helping you to create a better world? If so, how?

These ideas will help me pay better attention my imagination. Successful people have used mental pictures to get to where they are today, I will equally start creating beautiful and successful mental pictures of myself. With these ideas I have a better image of myself. And i have courage to carry out my plans towards achieving set goals. Rather than sir and wallow in self pity have a forward look I’m nostalgic of my future and not my past anymore. The past successes I build on them as success breeds success. The past failures I learn my salient points and move on understanding that I’m not a failure because I made a mistake or made a wrong choice.

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.

“Our mental picture of ourselves is our strongest force hence I will ensure I use this force to my advantage. I won’t glorify God if I don’t live my life to the fullest the way God planned it.”

Every living thing has a built-in guidance system or goal-striving device, put there by its Creator to help it achieve its goal which is, in broad terms to “live.”

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 and I found them very inspirational.

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