Victor Onochie – Assessments – International Institute for Global Leadership

As a Man Thinketh

Assessment by Victor Onochie (Nigeria)

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

The author is trying to convey that man’s life experience is a product of his thoughts and actions, that man is constantly creating his future by himself. That his circumstances in all spheres are berthed by him, and as long as he remains with a particular chain of thoughts he will keep having the same experiences even if he prays for something else for life is just and responds to what we are giving in thoughts and actions.

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

i. Thought and Character

The character of a man is tied to the kind of thoughts he harbors, a man’s character is a reflection of the kind of thoughts he is constantly thinking about. In my experience I have seen people who I admire their character and how they approach life, and with the awareness this book has created it has become very clear to me that their character is as a result of how they choose to see the world in their minds and the core values that is rooted within them. When a man has taken full responsibility of his life, he tends to be very careful to what he applies himself to, because he understands that chance is out of the way, that life will respond to him exactly in the measure he gives. I have most times in early years been afraid to approach people to ask for what I want or even shy to ask for as little things as direction to a particular place whenever I am lost, this very character of being timid is as a result of the fear of rejection. But as soon as I was able to break the thought pattern that creates that action, the story I tell myself, I have been able to step up and ask for what I want and have gotten wonderful needed response in the process.

ii. Effect of thought on circumstance

One wonderful statement the book made is that man’s mind can be likened to a garden which may be intelligently cultivated or allowed to run wild, but whether cultivated or neglected, it must and will bring forth. If man is poor or rich, it is as a result of the poor thoughts he has allowed to take root in his mind which keeps perpetuating his life circumstance of poverty, same goes for wealth. I personally had thought that life gives us gifts and favours and had thought that I should wait for my turn in life to receive my wealth etc. But I have clearly come to realize that except I am deliberate in my thoughts and actions I will not be able to get my desired result in life. I am today and entrepreneur which has been possible by me leaving my paid job to pursue my dream, if I had not developed the thought enough to believe I could do it and even start taking small steps that allowed me to make the mental leaps, I probably would not have left my job, on the other hand if I kept on harboring the thought of doing my own thing which was distracting me from my job, I probably would have been fired. So a man’s circumstance is a result of his highest thoughts and actions, because even in-action is a form of action. I am enjoying a rewarding marriage because of the thoughts I choose to harbor. I believe in personal growth which has been reflected to my wife and has inspired her to do the same and so we have a relatively healthy relationship compared to early years of our dating when we thought that the blame was with the other person for our own happiness, but as we developed our emotional intelligence, life has given us a different and well desired relationship.

iii. Effects of thoughts on health and body

Even a man’s looks is as a result of the constant thought he has been harboring over time. If he spends time smiling and thinking positively, his outward appearance will reflect that thought. He will look young and healthy, but as long as he decides to harbor thoughts of unhappiness it will reflect in his outward appearance. If he is in constant fear of sickness and disease he will attract them to himself. I might not be the huge type, but I know that has been tied to the way I eat and live. I have been tempted in the past to think that I probably I am the way I am due to nature, but being truthful to myself has revealed to me that I am simply the result of my feeding pattern, and as long as I choose to remain in that thought pattern that reduces my appetite to eat well, my body frame would remain the same.

iv. Thought and Purpose

Failure is not destiny, a man can fail in several attempts to achieve a specific purpose, but unless he develops a stronger will he will not be able to reach his purpose, for he might fail because of his ignorance to achieve a specific feat, but he fails because he has not learned the principle required to achieve that which he wants to achieve, but if he persist and raise his awareness he will develop that which is needed to succeed. In my life in the corporate world, I had thought that entrepreneurs are born and so I had remained in the corporate world, but with personal development, I came to realize that entrepreneurs choose their path and make a decision on that path, and while I had failed in my first attempt, I realize that I failed because there were some things I had not learnt which had resulted in my failure, but in my next attempt I have been deliberate and purposeful which has given me some level of result even if there has been challenges.

v. The Thought-Factor in Achievement

In the book “The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People” by Stephen Covey, He talked about beginning with the end in mind as one of the thought pattern of successful people; the same principle is affirmed here. The individual’s condition is as a result of his thought, if he fails to take responsibility to focus his thoughts, he will be in conditions that are not favorable to him. In my paid job, I had felt that I was not treated fairly, but now I realize that I was treated according to what I allowed, for if I acted with more confidence I would have been treated fairly and much better. In those same thoughts did I take the responsibility to step up and set up my own venture because I believe I was losing self-esteem from the way I was treated in the office, I really was treated that way because I had no confidence in the role I was playing. I felt I deserved more, and so I demanded more and when I did not receive what I felt I deserved I set out to go get what I deserved on my own on areas that really interest me and it has been rewarding.

vi. Visions and Ideals

What a man conceives he can achieve, If a man does not have a clear vision, he would not be able to achieve much in life, but when a man set his sight on a vision no matter how unattainable it may seem, and he persist on that path, the universe draws all that is necessary to help him achieve it. From young, I had a clear picture of the character of person I wanted to be married to, it is no surprise today how I am married to exactly the kind of woman I had aspired to be with, because day to day I had been building the picture and had been aligning my character to match the woman I dreamt of marrying. Today I am married to the woman of my dreams, when I first saw her, she struck me as the type of woman I would like to settle down with, and one thing led to another and today we are married with a lovely son.

vii. Serenity

Calmness of mind is one of the beautiful jewels of wisdom. When a man learns to govern his thoughts, he develops calmness of mind because he knows life is just and developing a calm mind builds on itself, for life will keep rewarding him with a calm atmosphere. I have earlier been the worried type, such behavior has affected my relationships and my peace of mind, but because I have developed a strong will to be calm by meditation, it has drastically given me a calm spirit.

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 ideas in this book have drastically changed my concept of life and led me to take major leaps in life because I know that the only way a man can get what he wants or the life he desires is by taking full responsibility of his life by consciously choosing his thoughts. In my professional life, I have learnt to be deliberate in my purpose and I have focused on serving not on money, because service in its very nature results in reward. A good valued service is always highly priced so I am seeking out ways to give valued service and to treat people with respect. I also seek to plan my resources in order to get the optimal use of what I have at my disposal.

In my personal life, I have chosen to be deliberate on my self-development for I would have richer relationships and a healthy life style to the extent I grow and take responsibility of the thoughts I harbor which result in the behavior I reflect.

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 visions that you glorify in your mind, the ideal that you enthrone in your heart, this you will build your life by; this you will become.”

We are constantly becoming what we are thinking, no more no less. It showed me how I got to where I am and if I want to see change then I must choose my vision deliberately.

“Law, not confusion is the dominating principle in the universe.”

Everything is perfect and rewards justly, if I focus on that I would have an objective perspective of the things that spring up in life.

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

This book has defined cause and effect as clearly as The Christ also brought to our awareness, I can’t find anything I disagree on.

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 can’t think of coming across any exercise in this material, its approach is however a proactive one.

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

I feel the questions were adequate to assess the book.

Please rate the following question on a scale of 1 to 10. Ten is good and one is poor.

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

Jonathan Livingston Seagull

Assessment by Victor Onochie (Nigeria)

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

The author is trying to convey that man we are all here to thrive and not just to survive, not to look for food and be safe, but to explore our inner greatness and break boundaries to be the very best of who we are which is unlimited.

i. The Desire for more

The story of Jonathan the seagull had a profound effect on me as I could fully relate it to our daily lives and how we limit ourselves to live an unfulfilled life because we choose to go with the status quo and not stretch ourselves following the inner most yearnings of our souls to do more and be more. The story really brings to bear the powerful notion that without desire we are just mediocre, and unless we feed our desires we will remain mediocre. I have always thought that life is much more than just going to school getting good grades and getting a comfortable job, marry, have children, retire with a pension and die. I always knew there was more especially when I have read the stories of those who have stretched themselves to live life to the fullest like Oprah, Barrack Obama, Bill Gates, Steve Jobs, Michael Jordan etc. these individuals are icons that have showed us that life is a lot more than following the system that has been laid down. I am exploring my entrepreneurial dreams because the desire has required I stretch to the unknown like Jonathan to see what more is out there.

ii. Braveness to step out of the crowd

Dreams and desires are nothing except we are able to break out from the crowd and explore new possibilities. The crowd will do everything to make us believe that what we conceive to achieve is impossible and not necessary, but except we are brave to say, I rather die doing this, or finding things out myself, or exploring new possibilities, we are trapped in life that will be of pain and misery. While Jonathan felt he wanted to explore his flying abilities his whole environment tried to suffocate that very dream. He got to the breaking point where he decided to explore his deepest aspirations no matter the consequences rather than just exist. He wanted to live to the fullest. In my hunger to do more, be more and give more, I have taken the very brave step to explore the world of entrepreneurship, hence my personal development, and it was far from easy to venture this part even if I know victory is not promised, but after considering the possibility of a mediocre life, I had to decide that I rather die doing this that live a mediocre life and today my soul has come alive with zest and I am ready to learn all I need to achieve my dreams.

iii. Breaking limiting beliefs

The group of seagulls believed that they were just in existence to move together and search for food for survival, it became a collective belief that was laid down for future generations and then came Jonathan who felt there was more, he explored like a child and enjoyed the fact that there could be more. He was able to break through the limiting belief of survival to thriving. In our lives, we have seen that those who live life to the fullest are those who stretch themselves to achieve incredible feats, because they believed that there was more, e.g. Michael Jordan, Barrack Obama, Oprah etc. These are those who broke out from the limiting beliefs that it cannot be done and have achieved it. I personally broke out from the limiting belief that entrepreneurs are born and not nurtured, for a man will be what he believes for he is limitless and that has lunched me into my chosen field of entrepreneurship. For those who believe have made heaven which means being perfect.

iv. Mentorship and role-models can help us grow

Jonathan was able to get a role-model which stretch past his present form and when he felt he wanted more he when in search for something more and got the most advanced seagull to model from. Those who have achieved great feats have fixed their sights to the sky and when they got to a point of comfort they always knew when to break the boundaries. I have grown through modeling the great around me, and whenever I feel I have gotten enough of a particular model, I searched for more.

v. Impossible is nothing to he who believes

The fable is similar to the gospel of The Christ, where the Lord tells all those who listens that man is infinite and can do anything with faith. That man was made in the image of God to act in such glory. The key factor is faith which is action in line with that which is not assured or seen. It is always done for us as we have believed, no more, no less, so we must go beyond what we see and answer the deepest yearnings of our soul like Jonathan did. The story of my life hinges on my life partner and my entrepreneurial journey, I believed I could marry a perfect soul mate which I did, I believed that even if I all my family are employees, I can be an employer by being an entrepreneur.

vi. Practice and persistence is the key to growth

It is not magic, but as we have believed we must keep practicing like Jonathan did to become an incredible seagull. We would make mistakes here and there, but when we are determined clear and focused on our line of action and practice, practice, practice, there is no limit to what we can become. In my entrepreneurial journey, I understand it is a practice and that is what I have given my life to. I have learnt that first hand in marriage that everything comes from practice, if you do not practice how to do anything you would not know anything and keep perpetuating the same behaviors that are resulting in the misery we experience.

vii. We are eternal and choose our next world

The story of Jonathan made it clear like the book “Conversations with God” by Neale Donald Walsh, that man transcends and is eternal, the fear of death has limited us from living life to its fullest, and we live life with our brakes on. Jonathan was able to explore to figure out for himself that we are everywhere it is all in the mind. He was also able to learn that to the extent you explore your potential in this world can you get same in the next.

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 ideas in this book have given more affirmation on the gospel which has been a revelation of how man is limitless and can do anything. In my professional life, I have learnt to be stretch beyond my comfort zone and think globally instead of locally. All my plans and aspiration are globally aligned and not locally aligned and I am building a brand with a global perspective because I believe I can get there.

In my personal life, I have chosen to be deliberate on my self-development for I would have richer relationships and a healthy life style to the extent I grow and practice to be the very best I can be. I have also learnt not to follow to the crowd but follow my intuition to be great and refuse and suggestion otherwise.

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 only true law is that which leads to freedom.”

Life is designed to put us at an advantage and is constantly urging us to be free, to fly, to soar. As we keep going in life one thing remains, life is leading and demanding us to be free for that is the very nature of our soul. When we deny freedom we become slaves and dwell in pain, even at that life pushes us to be free, even if it means to another life.

“You need to keep finding yourself, a little more each day, that real, unlimited fletcher seagull. He’s your instructor; you need to understand him and to practice him.”

Every day is a process of self-discovery, a discovery of our very soul, the very essence of who we are, and if we deny ourselves we will remain lost.

‘Heaven is not a place, and it is not a time. Heaven is being perfect’. This powerful quote reaffirms the sayings of the Christ when he says, be perfect as your father in heaven is perfect and then says the kingdom of heaven is not out there for it is in the midst of us and we must seek, we must seek who we truly are and everything will be added on to us.