Olawale Isaac Wale Awe – Assessments – International Institute for Global Leadership

As A Man Thinketh

Assessment by Olawale Isaac Wale-Awe (Nigeria)

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

The main idea is to adopt the attitude of right thinking at all times. Negative thoughts may flash but they must be expunged forthwith. The power to achieve is encapsulated in our thoughts. Man should dream lofty dreams. The process requires persistent efforts, patient and practice: the actualization of the dreams gives satisfaction to self and this keeps the world rolling forward. The mind is a master weaver of destiny. We are to create the vision of a better tomorrow and not wait until this vision is revealed to us.

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. As the plant springs from the seed so action proceeds from thought.

Repeated actions become a habit and habits become character. Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. All that we say or do commence as a thought; and if it persists, every step taken would be to actualize what goes on within. You meditate on what is precious to you; for where your treasure is, there your heart will be. Thus you may force a horse to the river but you cannot force him to drink. This is why many are absent minded. I remember, as a schoolboy I would be in the farm working and my mind would travel to the novel I was reading the night before. By the time I came to myself my siblings had worked past me. My father believed I hated farm work. It wasn’t a hatred of farm work but my mind often travelled back to what was precious to me and this affected my performance in the farm.

b. The thought of a man dictates his circumstance in life.

A man should look inwards rather than blame his circumstance on others. The man you are determines your reaction to the opportunities or challenges that come your way. All these ultimately dictate your destiny. I loved to teach and write: I eventually had to take up lecturing in a university for 11 years. During this period, I wrote five books.

c. Disease and health, like circumstances, are rooted in thought.

A merry heart, resulting from pure thought, does good to the body like medicine. Anger, hatred and envy, which flow from impure thought, will in the same way release gall into the blood stream thus poisoning the possessor a little at a time until he dies. I know a man who had stroke; and whoever came to sympathize he would tell to pray and not pity. He rose from bed in 7 days and has been healthy since.

d. Thought spurs a man into action.

The weak in thought should make efforts to practice what is required to focus on what is noble, praiseworthy and edifying and he will wield tremendous mental power. Recently, I realized I was spending too much on the rented apartment I occupied in Lagos and felt it would be better if I moved back to my own apartment farther from city centre. Within two months, I did all the required renovation and moved back to my house though this adds 30 minutes to the time I need to get to office every morning.

e. When pure thought is linked with legitimate purpose, the result is the attainment of lofty goals.

Thus no one achieves until he directs his thought to a purpose in life. Lift your thought then you rise, conquer and achieve. Lower your thought, and then you become weak, poor and miserable. Thus, to ascend you direct your thought; and to descend you allow your thought to wander. All the inventions, discovery and innovations that created the products and services we enjoy today emanated from men who thought right and created something new.

f. You cannot travel within and stand still without.

You will always gravitate towards your dream and vision, which are indeed products of your deep thoughts. I have a childhood friend who was talking of making millions while we were in our teens. He was a millionaire before many of his contemporaries ever started their first jobs. A man became a chartered accountant at 72 and when interviewed he said it was not to work but to achieve a dream.

g. The man that is calm, well poised, strong, balanced, stable and tranquil at heart is said to be matured and such will enjoy peace.

He is sweet tempered, patient and in control of his thought and actions. Peace will be his crown and fruitage and it will give him wisdom and power. He will be loved and revered and will prosper in all his ways. He is a perfect man. I can now see what make some people tick. The leader of my organization is such a man, we all love him and many more people are flocking to be associated with him. This is a pattern I want to follow.

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?

One must ensure there is harmony between one’s thought and actions. If your inner desire is to impart knowledge as a teacher what are you doing working in the bank? Is it for the money? Many are not happy and can never be fulfilled. Thus there is so much dissatisfaction in the work place because of this disharmony. I have resolved to harmonize my inner desire with my choice of work, leisure and association.

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.

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

Think of vengeance and before you know it you may become a murderer. If you think you are a good performer, before long you will lead your team.

“They themselves are makers of themselves.”

You are the one that will determine how far you will go and who you will become.

“God-like character is the natural result of continued effort in right thinking.”

Right thinking purifies you. You can’t think right and do otherwise.

“Man is made or unmade by himself.”

You will determine what you become. You are who you want to be. Cain murdered Abel and he became a wanderer. Esau sold his birthright and he lost the blessing.

“By the right choice and true application of thought, man ascends to the divine perfection.”

Mandela became a world hero by the thought of eradicating apartheid and he never discriminated against the whites when he became president, else he would have become what he fought against.

“Man is the master of thought, the molder of character, and the maker and shaper of condition, environment and destiny.”

“He decides what he becomes. He creates his environment. As you lay your bed so shall you lie on it! He saw the risks of manufacturing and he introduced robotics. He needed to communicate with people far away and he invented telephone and the internet. To keep memory of the memorable events he invented the camera. To increase his travelling speed, he invented the car, ship and aircraft. Man, therefore, as the lord and master of thought, is the maker of himself and the shaper of and author of environment.”

“Man can find every truth connected with his being if he will dig deep into the mine of his soul. Study and search yourself, you will discover who you are.”

“He that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.”

Asking is receiving! Importunity open doors of charity. If you keep mum, it is assumed all is well with you. Enquire and you will get answers.

“Every man is where he is by the law of his being. Who you are will determine what you will become. As birds of the same feather flock together, you will dine with princes if you attain.”

“The soul attracts that which it secretly harbors, that which it loves, and also which it fears. In short, what you meditate upon will surely come to you. Are you a lover of good?”

Good things will definitely come to you.

“The outer world of circumstances shapes itself to the inner world of thought. What befalls you is an outcome of your expectation.”

“Circumstance does not make a man; it reveals him to himself. Thus your condition reveals who you are. The man in the carpenters shed that outgrows the shed moved on to become a chartered accountant because what was within him was beyond the shed.”

“Thought and action are the jailors of fate. They are also angels of freedom. If you think of freedom you will become free even if you are a slave and if you think of slavery as a freeborn you will end up a slave.”

“Not what he wishes and pray for does a man get, but what he justly earns. No more, no less. If you give your employer less than your pay, you will lose the excess somehow. But if you give him more than he pays you, this will show and you would be lifted. You will receive that which you earn; no more, no less.”

“Good thoughts and actions can never produce bad results; bad thoughts and actions can never produce good results. What you sow is what you reap – measure for measure. You will fall, remain or rise with your thoughts – your vision, your ideal.”

“Blessedness, not material possessions, is the measure of right thought; wretchedness, not lack of material possessions, is the measure of wrong thought. Your thought is the harbinger of what befalls you.”

“You will be what you will to be. It is what you desire that you attain. Likes attract.”

“He who has conquered doubt and fear has conquered failure. Doubt and fear are the enemies of progress. They tie a man down on one spot when the door before him is wide open. Thought allied fearlessly to purpose becomes creative force. A man can only rise, conquer and achieve by lifting up his thoughts.”

“Victories attained by right thought can be maintained only by watchfulness. It takes more to retain what you attained. Let him that thinks he stands beware lest he falls.”

“The dreamers are the saviors of the world.”

Martin Luther had a dream; Barak Obama spoke of hope; Steve Jobs spoke of being different.

“He who cherishes a beautiful vision, a lofty ideal in his heart, will one day realize it. Envision what you will to become and one day you will be there. Do not wait to receive the vision, create it. To desire is to obtain; to aspire is to achieve. Dream lofty dreams, and as you dream, so shall you become. Dreams are the seedlings of reality. You cannot travel within and stand still without. You will always gravitate toward that which you secretly love most.”

“Calmness of mind is one of the beautiful jewels of wisdom. The wise are calm. Even a fool, when he maintains his quiet, is taken to be wise. It is wisdom not to be reactive, even in the face of provocation. The calm man, having learned how to govern himself, knows how to adapt himself to others.”

“Self-control is strength. Right thought is mastery. Calmness is power. Think right and you will learn to control yourself and you will enjoy peace.”

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?

The ideas are well presented.

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?

There are no exercises for the reader to complete.

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

The book brought out a relationship between thought, habit and circumstance that I love to tabulate. Thoughts crystallize into habits and habits solidify into circumstances. Table I shows a list of ugly thought and their attendant repercussions while table II shows a list of right thoughts and their concomitant consequences.

Table I: Results of Ugly Thoughts

S/N

THOUGHT

HABIT

CIRCUMSTANCE

Bestial

Drunkenness, sensuality

Destitution, disease

Impure

Confusion, lethargy

Distracting, adverse

Wavering (fear, doubt)

Weak, unmanly, irresolute

Failure, indigence, slavish dependence

Laziness

Weak, dirty, dishonesty

Foulness, beggarly

Hate

Accusation, violence

Persecution, injury

Selfish

Self-seeking

Distress

Table II: Results of Right Thoughts

S/N

THOUGHT

HABIT

CIRCUMSTANCE

Beautiful

grace, kindness

genial, sunny

Pure

temperance, self-control

repose, peace

courage, self-reliance)

Manly

success, plenty, freedom

Industry

Pleasantness

Abundance

Gentle, forgiving

Gentleness

protection, preservation

Loving, unselfish

Charity, friendliness

Abiding prosperity, true riches

It links cause to effect. What a man sows he will reap. The seed is inexpensive: it is not far away and does not require money to buy. It resides within. One cannot be helped by the other. The much a friend can do is to counsel. Let everyone watch what he feed his mind upon and what is sown in the heart. The heart is like a soil upon which the seed of thought would be sown. The fruit will show who we really are: by their fruit we shall know them. Let us be watchful.

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 Livington Seagull

Assessment by Olawale Isaac Wale-Awe (Nigeria)

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

The idea is to stand out of the crowd, seek knowledge and experiment. Discover yourself and be free; break tradition and aspire for excellence. There is a higher purpose in life than looking for daily bread or money or power: all of this is living for the moment. With more efforts on your part you can crack the limits. Then seek higher goals, not resting on your oars. This is applicable to all men at all ages and in all cultures.

My gain from reading the book is that it has jolted me, giving me a new vigor, to press on for higher heights in all areas of life. I have aspirations, some of which appear beyond my reach in terms of resources. But if I focus on them and work towards them, I know I will attain.

a. Stand out of the crowd, be different – be free.

Don’t be like the rest of the flock. When relocating from the city of Lagos in 1996, friends jeered but today I look back and rejoice I did. The experience in academics, the books I wrote and the development of a family in a serene atmosphere are testimonies of that decision.

b. Seek to know more – learn.

Live to find perfection and show it. I resumed work in the middle of a semester and had to wait idly till second semester. A colleague then asked for assistance in assessing students’ scripts in Entrepreneurial Studies. I took the scripts, the question paper and the study text. I had to read the text to produce the marking guide. I found the course interesting. By the following session, the course was allocated to me. This launched me into this field and I later wrote a book on the subject.

c. Put in efforts – you will beat the established standards and set new records.

I joined one of the Big 4 Audit Firms to train as a chartered accountant. I put in my best while on the job. Later in my career as a lecturer in the university, I wrote a sizable book on auditing.

d. Experiment – try new methods, skills.

Take risks. Looking back now, I discovered it was worth all my while leaving the city to establish my home in the country side. I was able to contribute more to the community.

e. No limits.

Think beyond the present. You will become what you envision. Don’t think of being trapped inside a limited body. As a young graduate in 1984, I remember a friend asking what I love to be in the future; and I told him I would love to be an author.

f. It may be lonely – yes, you need it to move forward.

For many years I was off the network of friends. This gave me the time to study and build the reservoir from which I wrote those six books.

g. Show kindness and love to all, including your enemies.

If your vision is one that will improve your world, you wouldn’t be able to attain it without the help of others. Leave a footprint that will tell good stories. I meet young people from time to time who introduced themselves as my students while I was a lecturer. Some would tell stories of how I inspired them and what that had contributed to their achievement in life. Many of my parishioners see me as a mentor and a father. I am encouraged by these to impart more 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 seven ideas sum to a clarion call to live for something so that one will not fall for anything. I look into the immediate future with a renewed vigor. There is need for change even now. I need to press forward; I have stayed long enough to move forward to make a positive difference. I have ideas on paper that I should start working upon. An end must come to postponement – tomorrow never comes.

4. Quotes: Are there any statements which the author made that particularly got your attention? If so, please quote them and comment as to why they were important to you.

“There is so much to learn.”

We learn daily – listening, reading, observing and experimenting. We must continue to learn. Many old people die with their last book under their pillows. There is so much to learn in life that I cannot afford to stop learning.

“We can lift ourselves out of ignorance, we can find ourselves as creatures of excellence and intelligence and skill.”

This is possible if we continue to learn. I must read more, study more, observe more and experiment more. Ignorance is a devourer and an enemy.

“Boredom and fear and anger are the reasons that a gull’s is so short. The lame duck does not fly. Boredom, fear and anger are brothers. They are associated. They tie down many and some victims end up committing suicide.”

I must remain active.

“One school has finished and the time has come for another to begin. There is no end to learning. The day we stop learning is the day we start retrogressing. One success is a doorway to striving for the next. It is not finished until we say bye to this world. There is no bus stop.”

I must keep moving.

“The most important thing in living was to reach out and touch perfection in that which they most loved to do. There is no stopping until I attain excellence. No room for mediocrity.”

“Think upside down. Ask questions; why do it this way and not the other way? It is the way to create, sometimes.”

I must practice this.

“We choose our next world through what we learn in this one. What you know will affect what you think and what you think is what you become.”

The more I learn now, the better for me and the better I sow into my future.

“Heaven is being perfect. Walk before me and be thou perfect was the instruction and the man attained perfection.”

If I attain excellence and perfection, my life will be heaven on earth.

“To stop seeing himself as being trapped in a body. I know a man crippled on both feet but he built his first house at 20. The Wright brothers taught the world to fly. The mind can lift the body. Let him that sleeps wake up; there is still more land to possess.”

My body cannot limit me; it will obey me if I instruct it.

“You don’t need faith to fly, you needed to understand flying. Knowledge is power. The people perish where there is no knowledge. Understanding instructs. This is wisdom.”

I can’t agree less!

“The gull sees farthest who flies highest. Your altitude determines what you see. A leader looks beyond the horizon; followers observe the surroundings. The bigger picture comes to him that aspires.”

The higher I go, the more I will see.

“Forgive them and help them. To forgive is to travel light, without weight, without a burden, relaxed and free. Go out of your way to help the people that wronged you, then you will experience love in the place of hatred. Don’t stop at forgiving, add charity. You will live long and you will be healthy.”

“The flight of ideas could possibly be as real as the flight of wind and feather. Yes, it is. Ideas are in the air and they move around; grab them, work on them and you will prosper; ignore them or procrastinate to your peril.”

“Break the chains of your thought, and you break the chains of your body too. The real prison is occupied by those who do no positive thinking. There are people who wrote their best books while in prison. The time of solitude is a time to think, and think right. Deliver yourself from thoughtlessness and aimless thought and you are free to fly.”

“We’re free to go where we wish and to be what we are. Yes! No limits to what we can become.”

Barak Obama didn’t have the best credentials but he had the audacity and he became president of the United States.

“We don’t have to obey the law if we’re not part of the flock. Break loose from the tradition and the tradition will no longer hold you captive.”

“The only true law is that which leads to freedom. You shall know the truth and the truth shall set you free.”

“Whatever stands against that freedom must be set aside, be it ritual or superstition or limitation in any form. If we put in the efforts we can crack the limits. If you come from a poor home, work your way out of poverty. Superstition is the limitation of the past; we are in the present and we can create the future.”

“We’re ahead of the fashion. Fashion is the fad of the moment. The forward looking people think far ahead of fashion; they create new ways of doing things. Steve Jobs, with his Apple, created new ways of communication.”

I too will create, thinking out of the box.

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?

How did Craig disappear? And even Jonathan? Or are we being reminded of Enoch and Elijah? They were blameless and thus never experienced death but were translated. I need to be able to put this in perspective.

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?

There are no exercises for the reader to complete.

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

Traditional ideas must be broken if a man must do anything tangible in life. “The reason you fly is to eat”, “Seagulls never fly in the dark” and “I am limited by my nature” are a few of such ideas. But we “eat to live” and not “live to eat.” There are now cameras that record in the dark, without a flash. We are to use our imagination to create; whatever we can envision, we can attain; and nothing is impossible to him who can think or dream. edifications and re-engineering may be required, what appears as impossibility today would become commonplace tomorrow.

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? 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

PsychoCybernetics

Assessment by Olawale Isaac Wale-Awe (Nigeria)

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

The main idea of the book is for us to understanding that your self-image is your self-definition based on your self-conception of who you are. You can equally employ self-suggestion to improve on your self-image. Ultimately, the most adequate and realistic self-image of all is to conceive of yourself as “made in the image of God.”

“Self-Image” sets the boundaries of individual accomplishment. A friend was performing poorly in Math but he was doing very well in other subjects. It was five months to writing WAEC exams. I counselled that if he could do so well in other papers, Math couldn’t be an exception. He agreed and made a credit in Math in the exams.

Positive Thinking works when it is consistent with the individual’s self-image. It literally cannot work when it is inconsistent with the self-image, unless and until the self-image itself has been changed. I was working in a bank but my interest was in academics. I resigned and started a consulting firm in partnership with three friends but still was not fulfilled. I had to resign and became a lecturer in a university before I could have a sense of purpose.

iii. Our Creative Mechanism

The goals that our own Creative Mechanism seeks to achieve are mental images, or mental pictures, which we create by the use of imagination. The architect did a very good job in the design of my house but I insisted on some changes against his views. I couldn’t figure myself living in what he designed for me on the first floor. I forced the change and I never regretted it.

This automatic creative mechanism within you can operate in only one way. It must have a target to shoot at a goal. I worked for four years in a bank. Salary was very good and I was single. I had no plans of what to do with the salary, and I didn’t do anything in those for years.

v. Will and Imagination

When the will and the imagination are in conflict, the imagination invariably wins the day. Ideas are changed, not by “Will,” but by other ideas. My ideas about money were negative those days. “Why is everyone eager to make money” was my usually inner question. Thus, I was earning good income from salaries but I had no investments and could point to anything of significant value until I had a change of ideas about money and its use and purpose. Secondly, I knew I should be out of employment before the retirement age if I was to achieve any tangible thing after retirement. Yet I stayed on, working for my employer, just because the pecks were good. I had to rethink and feel my mind with what I will do if I resign now before I could summon the courage to sack my employer. Now I can see what losses I have incurred of recent because I was not available to supervise my farm work.

Even our physical sense organs work better. My family were with me in Ibadan for the weekend. Then, by Sunday morning while preparing to return, we received a phone call that our country home in Ikere-Ekiti was on fire. We travelled down and arrived home after 150 minutes. What did we do? I led the family in praise worship to God that the house was still standing. Because we were not saddened by what happened, we were able to renovate the house without a feeling of defeat or loss.

He carries their seeds around in his personality and character. Never was I afraid of examinations as I understood early in life that if I study any subject well ahead of time and I review past exams questions, I will always do well. This has guided me even in sitting higher exams.

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 are very good in getting the individual to tailor his thoughts in a way that it will harmonize with his intended purpose in life. Many are facing east even when they know they should be facing west, because they concentrate their thoughts on the things in the west. The social effect of this book can be stupendous. Imagine if fifty percent of our people should read this book! We would relate better and hurt less.

4. Quotes: Are there statement the author made that particularly got your attention. If so, please quote them and comment as to why they were important to you.

“Happiness Does Not Lie in the Future but the Present.”

Thus, I must be happy here and now.

“Happiness is not the reward of virtue but virtue itself.”

Thus, that I am happy means I am seen as amiable – a virtue.

“The measure of mental health is the disposition to find good everywhere.”

Thus seeing the good in every person, thing or place shows I am mentally okay.

“A bicycle maintains its poise and equilibrium only so long as it is going forward towards something.”

Thus it is only when I have a goal to achieve that I function as I was programmed.

“Touch a thistle timidly, and it pricks you; grasp it boldly and its spines crumble.”

To me, fear is an inhibitor but courage breaks barriers.

“Often the difference between a successful man and a failure is not one’s better abilities or ideas, but the courage that one has to bet on his ideas, to take a calculated risk – and to act.”

Delay destroys destiny.

“Nobody Is Right All the Time. Only Little Men are Never Wrong. He who makes no mistake makes no discovery. You Make Mistakes, Mistakes Do Not Make You.”

Even if I fail, I am not a failure, I will try again.

“Healthy Self-Images Do Not Bruise Easily.”

Thus I should not be easily offended.

“No man is hurt but by himself.”

An assault will do no damage unless I allow it.

“Conscience’s Job Is to Make You Happy – Not Miserable.”

I must make amends when conscience pricks me and then I am free of the offence – what a joy!

“Doing Nothing Is the Proper Response to an Unreal Problem.”

Fear is acronym for False Evidence Appearing Real; most problems will fissile out over time, why bother.

“If only we fearlessly accept the challenge and confidently expend our strength, every danger or difficulty brings its own strength.”

The body is programmed to respond appropriately, why the worry, I should rather act.

“You merely change the record being played and the music takes care of itself.”

I must replace the thought that gives me headache with a thought that will give me joy, and then the headache will go.

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?

It is a well researched work and practical at that.

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

I did most of the exercises but I still need to go through again. The exercises have changed many things about the way I live and relate, even my thoughts. Now I consciously wear the right shoe before the left.

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 author did a good job of explaining all the relationships between the conscious and the unconscious mind and how we can control our thoughts to our advantage. It is a good book to read, read and read again until the ideas become second nature.

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? 9
D. Would you recommend it to others? 10
E. What is the overall rating you would give it? 10