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Food for Living: Keep Hope Alive
By Henry Ukazu
Greetings Destiny Friends,
One of the major causes of death in the world is frustration. When we are frustrated, we become so uneasy that so many thoughts come to our minds. Frustration can lead to suicide, and according to the National Institute of Mental Health, suicide is the leading cause of death in America.
As a Human Capacity Coach, I have seen and heard a thousand and one cases of the pain and psychological trauma most people go through. Some could be from failed relationships/marriages, businesses, academics, professions, or even personal issues. Many people are going through so many challenges, and in some cases, they are helpless about the situation.
It’s very easy for anyone to give up on life after exhausting all options. It could be more challenging when there is little or no hope to overcome the challenge. Imagine having a child who is sick or hungry and you can’t help the situation. Imagine being nominated for a lifetime dream opportunity of your choice and you were denied for no justifiable reason; imagine having all the right systems and structures in place in your business, and it still failed. These reasons are capable of sending one to the grave if proper care is not applied. That’s why I’m here today to tell you to keep hope alive.
What’s hope? Hope can positively mean: Hold on pain ends. Every pain has an expiry date. It is instructive to note that if you keep hope alive, it will keep you alive. Keeping hope alive entails having faith, believing in your work, having optimism that all will work out well. Above all however, it is the feeling that constantly reminds you that the universe will work in your favour. It is important to note that you will get everything you need when you have developed the capacity to receive it.
Regardless of any situation or challenge you may have faced, just keep hope alive. You may have been working on a project either with a team or personally. You may have wondered if your project will see the light of the day after investing so much time and resources, in addition to having numerous rejections, and the future appears bleak and insecure. Don’t give up. You may have many thoughts and concerns running through your mind on how to approach a plan. Listen, you don’t have to have a perfect environment before you hit the ground running. Whenever you feel the prompting in your mind, just move. Your conscience can never deceive you. You may not see it, but all that is expected from you is to keep hope alive and believe in your work.
There was a story of two men who went out to dig for gold. Mr. A dug halfway and found gold and left, Mr. B seeing what has happened thought to himself, am I doing anything wrong? I have dug digger than Mr. A, why haven’t I made any progress, or is there something am I missing? After much thought, he decided to leave his site and go to Mr. A’s position with the hope he may find gold, he didn’t realize he needed just a strike to get gold. This is what impatience and not having belief in oneself can cause.
As a leader, you must inspire hope in your subordinates. The first and last task of a leader is to keep hope alive. If you must lose all options, don’t lose hope. To keep hope alive is not easy, especially when the odds are against you. But then, that’s why we are human beings. To make hope work for you, you must be engaged in a business. Either you’re offering a service or selling a product. It is sad to note that there are some people who just believe things will work out by themselves without any effort on their part. It is instructive to note that during the 2004 Democratic National Convention, Barack Obama said, things won’t change if we don’t fix the problem.
Irrespective of your age, or any category you belong in life. I have just one clear message for you, don’t give up, regardless of what life offers to you. Hope is the last resort you have as a human being. If you lose all options in life, never lose hope.
How to keep hope alive
You must express your feelings
As human beings, we all have emotions in us. Your ability to express your thoughts and feelings in such an authentic way that makes you feel good is highly recommended. Do you know that sometimes, sharing our pains with others can be therapeutic, healing, and soothing to the heart? Caveat: Be aware of the people you share your personal information to, they may be wolves in sheep clothing. This set of human beings are not interested in your progress. They like it when you have challenges or even fail in life. It wouldn’t be bad if you call them chameleon
If you don’t communicate your intentions, it will be hard for people to know how to assist you. Some may even hurt you without knowing. In expressing your feelings, you can decide to cry, stay aloof, sleep, watch movies, etc. provided it makes you feel good.
Play music
Music is one of the healing therapies on planet earth. Music has a way of relaxing our pains regardless of any setback you may have faced. Depending on the issue, playing a spiritual song, healing song, rhythm & blues, etc. can instantly revive you.
Leave Your Comfort zone
When stressed or after experiencing a devastating disappointment, it’s advisable to leave your comfort zone, you can travel to another country or look for hope in unexpected parlance.
Be Grateful
Gratitude is a rare practice that is being practiced in our society. Grateful people are happy people. In our society, we are used to celebrating our wins without showcasing our failures. We fail to remember, it’s our failures that humble and inspire us to work harder. To keep hope alive, you have to bee grateful for the experience because it will make you strong in addition to giving you a story tomorrow.
Henry Ukazu writes from New York. He’s a Human Capacity & mindset coach. He’s also a public speaker. He works with the New York City Department of Correction as the Legal Coordinator. He’s the author of the acclaimed book Design Your Destiny – Actualizing Your Birthright To Success and President of gloemi.com. He can be reached via info@gloemi.com
Dear Destiny Friends,
Every human being loves to get approval, either for the great work they have done or the ones they are doing. They love to be appreciated and admired. They also love to be given attention when they have something valuable to say or do. In all of these, one thing is certain, there is something special about us, and this special thing makes one unique, and ultimately attracts people to us.
Let’s face it, nobody will admire you, appreciate you, approve you and give you attention if you don’t have anything to offer. The reason most people associate with someone is because they feel or know there’s something they can gain from the person. It’s hard for someone to relate closely with someone who they don’t see potential value in.
There is no doubt each and everyone of us is unique, yes, there’s something unique about you. You can sing, you can write, you can dance, you can lead, you can serve, you can cook, etc. One can even be a good actor, athlete, comedian, or preacher. The list is literally endless. Now, what’s unique about you?
When you discover what’s unique about you, please do all within your reach to nurture and develop it. One day, the right person, who truly appreciates and knows your value will celebrate you.
I have a friend who is exceptionally skilled in writing and developing creative contents. I call him a genius because he can literally write a book within a week. How he does it is what I don’t understand. I was surprised when he once told me he wrote a book and manuscript in one week. According to him, he has been developing the contents mentally, but hasn’t found time to put his thoughts together, and when he finally gets his thoughts together, he was able to write the book and manuscript. This is a typical way of knowing a unique being.
Many, however, do not know what’s unique about them. We focus our energy chasing what is not chasing us instead of focusing on developing what we already have. It’s sad to see young and old people living their lives in an unintentional manner with a belief that somehow lines, favour or opportunities will fall in place for them.
Sometimes, we rely on other people’s affirmation and opinion, and accept it as our fate. For instance, just because one is tall, he might be told he will be a great fit for basketball without considering if the athlete loves basketball; again, just because someone is very intelligent, his parents will encourage him to major in a particular discipline, which is perceived as lucrative without considering if the person likes it pr not.
I once experienced this fate when my late dad inspired me to study taxation law in New York Law School, a major I detest with passion. It was like a suicidal mission for me because I do know, it will take miracle to graduate from the program. How I was able to get a scholarship for my grades and graduate in record time is a story for another day. I’m not wired as a finance person, I will better serve humanity in the social and developmental space where my skills, talents, gift and passion will be better utilized. And ever since I joined the space, I have seen results.
There are many cases where many people lose their identities without knowing they are unique. We are all unique in our individual ways. Just like there are several gifts and talents, we have different skills. When you know what’s unique about you, you will stand out and the world will not only appreciate you, but will celebrate you.
When one discovers the power of their uniqueness, we will gather strength to unleash it to the world. Uniqueness works in several ways. For instance, the mere fact that ten people are genius, talented, skillful or valuable in a particular work, the person with the unique gift is the person who will not only stand out, but will be called upon to do the work.
Let me share more insight. If ten people sing a particular song with a great voice, the person who is called to be a singer will receive a unique appreciation because he/she is working on purpose. That is why it is easy to see a lot of people venturing into a particular form of business, but the favour of the business will not locate them because they are not uniquely destined to do business.
Few years ago, one of my mentors shared a deep insight with me. He said that, as a trained medical doctor, he once observed that despite the fact there are hundreds and thousands of medical doctors practicing their profession. One fateful day, he noticed a particular patient was not responding to treatment despite all the medication that had been given to him by a nurse, his health was deteriorating, then another nurse came and administered the same pill a nurse gave the patient, and the patient began to feel better. What does that tell you? The second nurse was probably working in her purpose which aligns with her profession, and as such the corresponding success. This goes to show that when one is unique, it has a way of robbing off on their work.
Furthermore, he stated that Mariah Carey, Michael Jackson, and Beyonce are some of the gifted singers and dancers the world has ever celebrated. He went on to say that we have hundreds and thousands of musicians, but only a few have got the spotlight.
What does that tell you? When you are unique, the world will celebrate you. I have understood that the fastest way to get recognition in life is to work in areas where one’s strength and unique gift will better serve the purpose. This is simply because the world does not celebrate one’s weakness, rather, the world celebrates one’s strength.
In recent times, I have seen myself as a counselor and human inspiration. My counseling skills have enabled me to influence people to live positive lives. Overtime, I have realized that when people share their burden with me, they feel relieved after speaking with me. What amazes me most is the fact that even my elders feel comfortable to relate with me on a cordial basis. Maybe, I have a unique gift for counseling and educating.
Today, I am going to charge you to focus your energy and time on whatever will bring you the highest satisfaction. Even if you are looking for a job, applying for school, or seeking any opportunity, your focus should be centered on what you have that the job, school or opportunity will amplify. When you do so, you will be in high demand.
In conclusion, please affirm to yourself today, I am a unique being with a unique personality, purpose and gift.
Say to yourself, ‘I am original’, and refuse to be fake.
Again confess that your originality, authenticity and uniqueness will attract favours, blessings, opportunities from leaders and queens to you, and you will be celebrated.
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 Your and Unleash Your Destiny . He can be reached via info@gloemi.com
The Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) has emerged as the Best Road Safety Agency in Africa. This monumental achievement corroborates the Corps’ almost four decades of dedication, resilience and passion towards safeguarding lives on Nigerian roads.
The Corps, according to a statement made available to the National Association of Online Security News Publishers (NAOSNP), received the award at the 3rd edition of the Kofi Annan Road Safety Award held in Elzuwini in the Kingdom of Eswatini, South Africa between 14th and 15th of April 2025.
You may recall that Kofi Annan Road Safety Award was initiated by the Office of the United Nations Secretary General’s Special Envoy on Road Safety in collaboration with Kofi Annan Foundation to immortalize the contributions of African illustrious son Kofi Annan who served as the Secretary General of the United Nations.
The prestigious Road Safety Management Award represents a badge of honour for Nigeria, and a pure testament of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s commitment to unflinching support for the Federal Road Safety Corps and his believe in the Corps’ potential to serve as a model for other African nations. Indeed, FRSC’s tireless efforts to reduce road crashes and promote safe driving practices have paid off, earning recognition across the continent.
The recognition further speaks volume, as well as justifies the giant strides Nigeria has made in ensuring safety of road users and her leadership role in the Sub-region.
Reacting to the recognition, the Corps Marshal, Shehu Mohammed said that it is a testament to FRSC’s unrelenting passion for road safety. He thanked the entire community of the motoring public, stakeholders, partners, and the Nigerian people for their support. Emphasising that together, the Corps was able to achieve the enviable feat because of the collective energy and all round support received from the motoring public.
The Corps Marshal also revealed that FRSC’s winning formula includes, innovative strategies, implementing cutting-edge road safety initiatives that drive results, collaboration, fostering partnerships with stakeholders to promote road safety awareness, community engagement, educating the public on safe driving practices, full deployment of technology and road safety protocols.
The award was received on behalf of the Corps and the Federal Republic of Nigeria by the Principal Staff Officer to the Corps Marshal ACM Meshach Adigizi Jatau.
A Chief Magistrate in the Rivers State Judiciary, Mr. Ejike George, has resigned his appointment.
He hinged his decision on the unease over the appointment of a Sole Administrator to oversee the affairs of the State.
His resignation was contained in a letter dated April 11, 2025, and addressed to the Honourable Chief Judge of Rivers State through the Secretary of the Rivers State Judicial Service Commission.
The letter was titled “Voluntary Retirement From Service.”
George, who disclosed that he had put in 16 years in the judiciary, said the appointment of a Sole Administrator is tantamount to a “quasi-military administration.”
He expressed dismay over the direction of the governance of the State, which he said is “alien” and “antithetical” to the values of the legal profession.
The statement read: “This present is intended to convey my decision to voluntarily retire my appointment as Magistrate of the Judiciary of Rivers State.
“This difficult and regrettable decision is informed largely by my discomfort with the recent appointment of a quasi-military administration to run the affairs of a modern state like ours.
“Milord will agree with me that this type of governance system is not only alien but also runs antithetical to our hallowed profession as legal practitioners and adjudicators.
“Having put in a whopping 16 (sixteen) out of my 22 (twenty-two) years of legal practice into this Judiciary as Magistrate under successive democratic administrations, I find it difficult to work with the current setting, as doing so would amount to a tacit and naive acquiescence.
“Thanks Milord, for the opportunity to serve.”
