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Food for Living: Become a Person of Value
By Henry Ukazu
Dear Destiny Friend,
“Try not to become a person of success but rather try to become a person of value” – Albert Einstein
To be valuable is one of the best things that can happen to any person. Whoever has value is the king of the pack, and is well sought after. He is resourceful, and everyone wants to tap into his resourcefulness.
But what does it mean to be a person of value? Note that understanding differs when the word value is mentioned. Value is relative because what’s valuable to one person might not be valuable to another. For example, a lady who has several suitors seeking her hand in marriage has something of interest she admires and dislikes in every suitor, but what will determine who she will marry will be the value she desires in a man. This value might be money, character, academics, loyalty, beauty or skill.
It’s however, sad, when people think that value relates to only money; but value is more than money. It can be skills, academic qualifications or certification, network and networth, spiritual life, social life, physical strength, position, talent among others.
To the world, value means having something to offer; a person’s value is something that can make a positive difference in the lives of others. When one is valuable, it means that they are not just a consumer, but a producer and creator. It means that they are not just followers, but a leaders.
The importance of value cannot be overemphasized. Everyone has a measure of value, but the challenge most people face is the inability to maximize their value.
Your value is a gift to the world. Your value is your talent. People of value are in high demand. People of exceptional value are in higher demand, and are respected and honoured.
Did you know that your value can be used to know your interest? For instance, how you spend your time; what you think; how you invest and spend your money; where you work; causes you support; choice of majors; the books you read; the events you attend and more, all combine to reflect your inherent value. Your value will assist you to know how you can balance work life and career. Your value can be used to showcase your mission and passion for life.
It’s instructive to note that nobody will willingly come to you if you don’t have value. When you position yourself as a pest, beggar, liability, etc., people will begin to see you in that light. Just to let you know how attractive one can be, imagine an ant being attracted to sugar. It is simply because the sugar has what the ant likes. That’s how life works. People will come to you when they see you have what they have. That simply tells you must add value to yourself. Quit complaining and apportioning blame to people, government and circumstance, take ownership and responsibility of your life. According to – Marcus T Cicero “You will be of as much value to others as you have been to yourself.”
When you know the value you offer, you won’t need to talk too much. You will have self confidence, you won’t need to announce yourself, rather, people will seek your services or product. According to Patrick Lencioni, the author of “The Five Dysfunctions of a Team, “he stated the five ways to become a person of value and Influence. According to him, you must find your passion and purpose; Embrace Personal Development, choose a problem you can solve; be authentic.
1. Find your purpose and passion
The great and influential men and women the world has ever known were those who discovered and pursued their purpose and were driven by their passions. When you’re on the path of purpose, it’s easier to add significant value to the lives of others. You’ll hardly be of any significant value to people or influence them when you don’t know where you are going yourself. Purpose ignites passion which keeps you motivated, inspired and focused. You need that to be valuable and influential.
2. Embrace personal development
Becoming a person of value and influence demands embracing a lifelong pursuit of personal development. Personal development is a process of understanding and developing yourself to realize your full potential. The extent to which you’re able to add value and influence others depends on the extent to which you have been able to develop yourself. Every raw material has little or no value. It becomes valuable after it’s been refined. Take time to refine yourself in every area. That could be hard but it’s rewarding. Daily ask yourself, “What do I need to learn or do to become a better person?
3. Choose a problem you can solve for people
To be a person of value and influence, you have to become genuinely interested in people enough to solve a specific problem for them. Think of what you can do to make lives better. The more people you solve problems for, the more valuable and influential you become.
4. Be original and unique
When we live our lives mimicking or imitating others, it steals our originality. Originality is the beauty of life. Guess what? Imitations don’t get much attention, originals do. You can copy my style, but you can’t imitate my creativity. We’ve all heard that when you imitate someone else, the best you can be is second best. That’s very true. To be a person of influence, don’t be anyone else. Be you.
5. Pursue excellence
Becoming a person of value and influence is not going to be so much about what you do as it is about how well you do it. It’s said that whatever is worth doing is worth doing well. Go beyond the usual. Add a touch of class in all you do. That’s what excellence is all about. Mind you it’s not the same as perfection.
6. Encourage and inspire others
Find a way to encourage and inspire others to be all they can be. Empower, share your knowledge and skills with others. Your value and influence is connected to the number of lives that are better because of you.
7. Exude confidence
Self-confidence is one quality that’s very admirable. It’s about knowing what you want and having the courage and boldness to go for it. When you’re self-confident, people are attracted to you. When you don’t have it, the opposite is the case. The reason is simple — what value do you think a person who doesn’t believe in himself offers?
8. Have integrity
It’s true that none of us is perfect but for you to be a person of value and influence you must be able to earn people’s confidence and trust. You should be able to live by certain values that uphold sound moral principles. Integrity means always doing the right thing and, in all circumstances, whether or not it’s convenient. It’s about being sincere and real. It’s about being honest enough to admit when you’re wrong. It’s your “yes” as “yes” and your “no” as “no”. It’s people trusting you not for any other reason but because you have earned their trust.
In conclusion, to be relevant consider being a person of value. Remember, your value depends on what you can offer.
Armed policemen have taken over the Wadata Plaza headquarters of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Abuja, as tension continues to mount over the party’s National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting, which is expected to hold today.
Channels Television quoted an unnamed party official, who alleged that the police were deployed to stop the proposed NEC Expanded Caucus meeting.
Though some staff members of the party were initially allowed to go into the premises of the secretariat without any resistance from the police, they were later sent out.
Journalists were also been asked to leave the premises of the secretariat.
Some policemen were seen cordoning off Dalaba Street, which is the road leading to Wadata Plaza.
The Presidency has said there has been no change in the position of Senator George Akume as Secretary to the Government of the Federation.
“There has been no change in the status of His Excellency, Senator George Akume, as Secretary to the Government of the Federation,” Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, said in a statement made available to journalists.
The statement is titled ‘Akume Remains SGF.’
This followed multiple reports which quoted Presidency sources saying Tinubu had named his Special Adviser on Policy Coordination, Hadiza Bala Usman, to serve as the new SGF.
Onanuga said, “President Bola Tinubu, currently in Saint Lucia, has not made any new appointments.
“The information circulating about Akume’s replacement is untrue. Agents of mischief fabricated it.
“The Presidency advises Nigerians to disregard the fake news.”
By Henry Ukazu
Dear Destiny Friends,
It is everybody’s desire to be successful in whatever field of endeavour he finds himself. It can be in career, family life, business endeavors or personal development. But there’s absolutely nothing good that comes easy. Everything in life involves a lot of hard work, smart work, dedication, discipline, network, sacrifice, prayers, and determination among a whole lot if one is intentional to succeed.
Of a truth, success is not for the faint-hearted. In all honesty, everyone wants to be ahead of everyone, especially contemporaries and funnily enough, the average human being sometimes have a bit of ill- feeling when competitors arise or seem to outsmart them either with better quality or price. The good thing about this however, is that it makes one sit up.
Now, this brings us to the essence of today’s article. For anyone to be ahead of their competitors, they must fly like the eagle. Eagles are known for their powerful build, sharp vision, and fearless nature. They are highflyers, capable of soaring to great heights, and gliding for extended periods. Eagles are also known for their tenacity, using storms to their advantage to gain altitude. Other notable characteristics include their strong talons and beaks, used for hunting, and their protective nature towards their young. These are some of the qualities that make it unique.
The eagle is not regarded as the king of the sky for fun, no. The eagle flies so high because that’s where it gets a chunk of its strength. This ability enables the eagle to take its prey and predators alike to it’s abode where it will have enough emotional and physical strength to dismantle them.
I will be sharing characteristics of an eagle to enable us know why we ought to be like the eagle if we want to soar.
VISION
The eagle has a sharp vision. Their vision is so precise. They can see farther than any animal. They possess exceptional eyesight, allowing them to spot prey from great distances. As human beings, we must have eagle eyes to know what we really want, and what we don’t want. Vision allows us to go for what we desire and deserve. When we have vision, we won’t wait for anyone to tell us when to strike. We flow through the wind despite the waves and heavy current and associated challenges. When our vision is precise, it will give people clarity to understand how they can assist us.
Let’s take a closer look at great leaders of this world who have come and gone. There are many great leaders that came and went but one characteristic that is common in all is “Vision”.
Vision is a successful leadership characteristic
You must have a vision that guides and leads your team towards the organizations or societal goals. The vision must be big and focused. A big, focused vision will produce big results
FLIGHT
Eagles are known for their ability to soar and glide, using their large wings to their advantage. Eagles can fly up to an altitude of 10,000 feet, but they are able to swiftly land on the ground. At 10, 000 feet, you will never find another bird. If you find another bird, it must be an eagle.
An eagle doesn’t mingle around with the pigeons. It was Dr. Myles Munroe who said that. Pigeons scavenge on the ground and grumble and complain all day long. Eagles are not. They fly and make less noise waiting for opportunities to strike their next prey or glide with the current of the storm.
Great leaders are problem solvers. They don’t complain like the pigeons do. They love to take challenges as the eagle does when the storm comes. As human beings, we all have our strengths and weaknesses.
It’s always good for one to take any fight to their home ground where it will give them advantage over their predators. For instance, a fish is stronger in water, but weak on land, a lion is stronger on land, but weak in water, a monkey is strong on trees but weak on air. Just like an eagle is strong on air and weak on water and land. That’s why it always takes its prey to the sky where they have greater advantage to shine.
As human beings, we also must know what we are naturally good at, the ability to know this will enable us to maximize our strength and work on our weakness. We can only do this when we know ourselves and what we are naturally good at. Our ability to focus on our expertise and what we are naturally good at will make us unique and ahead of our contemporaries.
TENACITY
The eagles are known for their ability to withstand storms and use them to their advantage, rising above the challenges. Watch an eagle when a storm comes. When other birds fly away from the storm with fear, an eagle spreads its mighty wings and uses the current to soar to greater heights. The eagle takes advantage of the very storm that lesser birds fear and head for cover.
Challenges in the life of a leader are many. These are the storms we must face as leaders to rise to greater heights. Like an eagle, a leader can only rise to greater heights if he takes up the challenges head on without running away from it. This is yet another leadership characteristic.
As humans, we all will experience challenges and setbacks, however, the ability to apply strength will go a long way to show how determined we are to overcome the hurdles that pose as challenges.
FEARLESS
An eagle will never surrender to the size or strength of its prey. It will always give a fight to win its prey or regain its territory.
Successful leaders are fearless, so we are expected to fear no man, but respect all men. They face problems head on. We are supposed to have the eagle fearless mindset regardless of how big the problem may appear. Confront your fear and rise or face your fear and run. The choice is yours.
VITALITY NATURE
One of the strongest characteristics of an eagle is their vitality. Eagles are full of life and are visionary, but they find time to look back at their life and re-energize themselves. This happens at about the age of 30. What happens is that when the eagles reach the age of 30, their physical body condition deteriorates fast making it difficult for them to survive.
What is interesting is that the eagle never gives up living, instead it retreats to a mountaintop and over a five-month period goes through a metamorphosis. As humans, we are expected to reexamine ourselves, retreat to a safe zone. We can do this by fasting as Christians, we can also do this by learning new skills, volunteering our time and seeking for mentors who can hold us by the hand to show us how the appearance of life is not the reality of life.
In conclusion, as human beings, we are encouraged to be like an eagle if we want to scale through life.
Henry Ukazu writes from New York. He works with the New York City Department of Correction as the Legal Coordinator. He’s the founder of Gloemi. He’s a Transformative Human Capacity and Mindset coach. He is also a public speaker, youth advocate, creative writer and author of Design Your Destiny Design and Unleash Your Destiny . He can be reached via info@gloemi.com
