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Food for Living: Need for Self Evaluation
By Henry Ukazu
Greetings Destiny Friends,
“The unexamined life is not worth living” – Socrates
One of the most valuable character traits one must have if they truly want to succeed in life, is honesty. If you don’t have this trait, please endeavor to have people who are honest working with you or in your family. If you have these people, please hold them very close because they are priceless.
In the journey of life, you can lie to others, but you can never lie to yourself. As a matter of fact, one of the highest disservices anyone can do to himself is lying to himself. It’s sad to note however, that some people live in deception by existing as opposed to living.
As a progressive being, one of the things you can do is to evaluate your life on a continuous basis. According to Socrates, “an unexamined life is not living”. Evaluating one’s life is very important, and this evaluation is not limited to one’s personal life; you can evaluate your career growth, spiritual growth, financial growth, personal and professional growth. It is generally stated that you cannot do the same thing repeatedly and remain the same. Whoever does that is insane. Hence the need to continually evaluate yourself whenever you embark on any task to know if it’s progressing well.
Every serious-minded entrepreneur, student, parent, leader etc. must take time to evaluate how the year fared for them. Evaluation helps to determine how well one is faring. Evaluation does not only apply when we fail, we can also celebrate our failures because it shows we are doing something. It’s sad to note that sometimes, we don’t take time to celebrate our wins no matter how small it is.
Evaluation comes into play when there are small wins. Do you think it’s easy to register a business? Do you think it’s easy to get accepted into a school, company? Do you think it’s easy to attend events and network with resourceful people? Do you think it’s easy to be alive? Do you think it’s easy to make a business post on social media? Do you think it’s easy to send a meaningful text message, email etc. to a resourceful person? All these involve process, procedures, and strategies because anything of value is done with process. So, celebrate your small win when you do the needful. Remember, nobody will celebrate you if you don’t celebrate yourself. You wear the shoe, and as such know how far you have come in life.
On a personal note, when I take stock of my life, I can confidently say, I have done reasonably well for myself. I have been able to hone some new skills in addition to having some new hits in my personal and professional career. I may not be a billionaire, but I have been able to author two books in addition to being recognized globally as a mentor, life coach, youth advocate, creative writer, and public speaker. These qualities didn’t come with me, I had to acquire and hone them by constantly evaluating myself and adding value to my life.
Furthermore, I do take time to evaluate the people in my life, my personal life, my career path, and spiritual life. In some cases, I ask trusted friends and family members to critically evaluate my life on where I am doing well and where I need to work on.
Above all, none gives me joy more than seeing my three-year-old son saying, daddy each time he sees me on television and social media for a good cause. The feeling is truly priceless. Imagine, being on the internet for a negative cause. The moral here is that I see how my video contents have truly grown due to constant evaluation.
Evaluating your life is a process that can help you check whether you are living your best life, or if it needs improvement. A critical way of evaluating your life is by asking yourself, am I leaning on the right side of the ladder? This question is very important because you might think you are leaning on the right side of the ladder only to get to the finish line and discover you were merely leaning on the wrong side of the ladder and that might lead to a disaster if not properly managed.
Here are some thoughts you need to ponder on. You must ask yourself, what do I want? Am I happy with the kind of life I’m living? What is the kind of dream job or life I would love to live.
1. Honesty
This is the most important trait one must apply if one is truly serious in the self- evaluation process. Self and professional evaluation starts with authenticity whether at the workplace, church, or political setting.
2. Alignment
The first piece of the reevaluation process is aligning your future goals with your current self. Alignment works with values, visions, and passion. When your profession, vocation and ministry are in alignment, one can be said to be living on and fulfilling purpose.
3. Humility
Humility is very critical when it comes to self evaluation and your goals, One must approach the entire process with humility. Life happens to everyone, and as such being amenable and dynamic to change is a great way to live through life. It takes humility to realize you may never achieve everything one desires.
As the year is winding down, take time to evaluate your business, family, career, spiritual life, and personal and professional life to know if you have fared well in those areas. Planning for the new year or season without first examining the mistakes of the previous year, will not make much impact if you haven’t learnt from your past mistakes. For one to achieve more in life, one must do or become more. Success in life is not a result of what you are doing, but what you are becoming.
In conclusion, as the year is about to end, you must endeavor to improve each area of your life by practicing self-examination, look inwardly and identify areas of your life that need to be modified and what needs to be eliminated.
Henry Ukazu writes from New York. He works with the New York City Department of Correctionp as the Legal Coordinator. He’s a Transformative Human Capacity and Mindset coach. He is also a public speaker, youth advocate and creative writer Design Your Destiny and Unleash Your Destiny. He can be reached via info@gloemi.com
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has declared the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Mr. Lucky Aiyedatiwa, as the winner of the just concluded Ondo State governorship election, held on Saturday, November 16, 2024.
The Returning Officer for the election Olayemi Akinwumi, who is also the Vice-Chancellor of the Federal University, Lokoja, Kogi State declared Aiyedatiwa winner of the election on Sunday, extending the governor’s stay at the Government House in Alagbaka, Akure.
Governor Aiyedatiwa polled 366,781 votes to defeat his closest rival and a former deputy governor of the state Ajayi Agboola who flew the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) flag. He scored 117,845 votes, more than twice lower than the APC candidate.
“That Lucky Orimisan Aiyedatiwa of the APC having satisfied the requirement of the law is hereby declared the winner and is returned elected,” the returning officer said at exactly 2:30 pm at the INEC collation centre in Akure.
The declaration came hours after the collation of results for the election began in the early hours of Sunday. Although the collation centre went on breaks, the APC took a commanding lead with over 200,000 votes ahead of the PDP.
The final results showed that the APC won the election in a landslide, clearing all 18 local government areas.
By Henry Ukazu
Dear Destiny Friends,
There is no gainsaying the fact that everyone desirous of making impact in life must live a life of purpose. This is where knowledge and information come to play. It is these knowledge and information that will set an individual apart from his contemporaries.
I strongly believe, if one is not informed, they are ill-informed, and when they are ill-informed, they can’t perform well in any given endeavour. This is because information leads to reformation and transformation. We can therefore, confidently say that information leads to formation because everyone is a product of what they know.
Knowledge acquisition is one of the best things that can happen to anyone. People with knowledge are revered, and highly respected. Having knowledge is like having money. People from all walks of life will seek you.
There are different kinds of knowledge, and they include Revealed Knowledge, which comes from those who wrote the Bible and Intuitive Knowledge, which comes from the mind. It is the ability to gain knowledge without conscious reason or explanation.
Others are Empirical Knowledge, which is information gained through observation, experimentation, and direct experience, rather than through theoretical reason or intuition; Authoritative Knowledge, which is the knowledge a man has because of his expertise in a particular field; and finally but not the least, Rational Knowledge, which is a form of knowledge that uses reasoning and philosophy to understand the world.
From this illustration, a decisive mind can see that knowledge is priceless. Knowledge is like education. It can provide security and access. Even the Book of life says in Proverbs 4:13, “your education is your life, guard it very well”; and in Hosea 4:6 that “my people perish for lack of knowledge”.
From my personal experience in life, apart from death, one of the greatest levelers of all time is education. This is because the child of a certified pauper can become a man of means tomorrow if properly educated. That explains why children from humble backgrounds ought to take their education very seriously, especially if they don’t have affluence.
On a personal note, I come from a very humble background, my late parents didn’t have the opportunity of acquiring a decent education, but they knew the value of education and endeavored to give me and my siblings a decent education. In retrospect, when I look back and see some of my contemporaries whose parents couldn’t give them a decent education, I bless my late parents because education has exposed me to lots of opportunities in the United States, and the global world in addition to granting me an audience with the high and mighty in society.
Sometimes, when I look at my modest achievement, I’m deeply humbled because I know it is the grace of God. Who am I to author two amazing trailblazers’ books, get featured and profiled by the New York Times, engage in high level conversation with leaders of thought and captains of industries. Apart from the grace of God, intentional seeking of knowledge, and wise counsel from mentors and strategically positioning myself have been some of the cornerstone to my success.
Imagine if my late parents didn’t give me a decent education and opportunity of travelling to the United States, most of these opportunities and exposure wouldn’t have been readily available.
When one is decently enlightened, educated and informed about life, their level of reasoning and understanding differ from an ordinary man. If one desires to go far in life, one must seek knowledge.
It is your knowledge that sets you apart from others.
According to Dr. Yomi Garnett, an accomplished Ghostwriter, “If you are a man of great knowledge, people will have great respect for you. If you are a man of great wisdom, people will have great reverence for you. And if you are a man of both, great knowledge and great wisdom, you will be the most eminent of men. But in real terms, people don’t care how much you know, or how much wisdom you have, unless they know how much you care.”
The moral of this quote is that despite the knowledge and information at one’s disposal, if one lacks empathy, their knowledge, experience and whatever they have mean nothing.
The importance of knowledge cannot be overemphasized. In our contemporary society, a fast way of attracting opportunities is by showcasing the knowledge at one’s disposal. It is so sad that many people don’t take time to read, research and learn new trends applicable in their industry, and in the world generally and as such, they find it difficult to fit in and grow.
It is instructive to note that when you seek knowledge, opportunities will seek for you. A major reason people are poor is simply because they are not solving problems and to solve problems, one ought to have understanding. Do you know that if you don’t have money, the reason is often because you are not solving a problem, or you are not solving enough problems, or you are not solving the right problem or you are not solving problems for the right people. Generally, we make money because we have something unique to offer to the world. Therefore, to solve problems, one must have knowledge and information.
We currently live in an age of technological, where skills, talent and creativity are in high demand. Any progressive being that desires to go far must be intentional in seeking knowledge. Successful acquisition of knowledge, information and understanding can lead to discernment and wisdom.
In conclusion, as you journey towards life, if you want to make an impact, seek opportunities, and earn more money, do yourself a favour by endeavoring to seek knowledge, wisdom, and information. You can’t get these by sitting on your sofa or staying in your comfort zone.
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
President Bola Tinubu has approved the appointment of Daniel Bwala as Special Adviser, Media and Public Communications (State House).
Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, announced this in a statement, on Thursday.
A former aide of former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar, candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the 2023 election, Bwala worked actively for his former principal who lost to Tinubu.
However, after the elections, he worked his way into the camp of Tinubu, sparking controversy.
Onanuga also announced the appointments of three directors-general of various agencies.
They are:
(1) Mr. Olawale Olopade — Director-General, National Sports Commission
(2) Dr. Abisoye Fagade — Director-General, National Institute for Hospitality and Tourism
(3) Dr. Adebowale Adedokun — Director-General, Bureau of Public Procurement
Olopade, the new Director-General of the National Sports Commission, is a sports administrator with many years of experience in the sector.
He served as commissioner of youth and sports in Ogun state and was chairman of the local organising committee of the 2024 National Sports Festival.
The new Director-General of the National Institute for Hospitality and Tourism, Dr. Abisoye Fagade is a marketing communication professional. He is the founder and managing director of Sodium Brand Solutions.
Adedokun, the new helmsman of the Bureau of Public Procurement, was the director of Research/Training and Strategic Planning at the bureau before his appointment.
Daily Trust
