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Food for Living: Requirements for a Journey to Success
By Henry Ukazu
Dear Destiny Friends,
There’s obviously nothing as sweet as success. Just name it; giving birth to a new baby is a success; passing an exam is a success; getting a promotion is a success; publishing a book is a success; celebrating 10, 20, 30, 40, 50 years of marriage is a huge success; setting up a business which runs like an institution is a success; winning an election as well as leaving a legacy are success stories. Feel free to add yours.
The journey to success is not an easy route though, it comes with its own challenges. But one thing is certain, there are universal principles of life that are applicable to success. You can’t have genuine success without having a track route to follow. For instance, to attain success, you must plan; you must experience challenges along the way which makes you to adjust your plan; you must work very hard and smart, and this entails sacrificing your time, your sleep, reading, and networking with the right people and organization.
A critical area of success I will like to discuss today is discipline. Without discipline, it will be difficult to achieve success. Discipline plays a major role in success. In fact, it will be right to say that the hallmark and foundation for success can be attributed to discipline.
Discipline is doing whatever you are supposed to do irrespective of the circumstances. For instance, if you are determined to reduce weight, you might decide to spend at least fours hours every week at the gymnasium. You may even decide to do a 30 minutes daily exercise at a conductive time that works for you during the day.
Personally, I exercise daily between the hours of 4:30 am- 4:50 am every day. This is a routine that has become an intrinsic part of me in the last month. Prior to that, I just do 100 push up in the morning and 100 push up at night. This is because I am passionate about my health. I have been drinking two glasses of water every morning when I wake up from sleep for the last 10 years. Now, this has become an integral part of me because if I don’t drink water, it will appear to me I’m missing something.
In understanding the concept of discipline as it relates to success, I will like to shed more light on the concept of well-being. This is because discipline and well-being work together. While discipline entails working on a planned routine in order to achieve a set goal, well-being is knowing when to take it easy.
Let’s take it a little bit further. Well-being is knowing when to be disciplined and when not to be disciplined. Well-being is the common sense of discipline. While discipline is for a season, well-being is for all seasons. Let me share a practical example. While I always exercise every day regardless of circumstance, I do know that my health and well-being are more important than any goal I want to achieve. That’s why I said, discipline is for a particular season when your health is in good shape, but your well-being is for all-season provided you are in good condition.
Another aspect of the journey of success worthy of mention is mentor/coach. In your journey to success, you need the guidance and experience of worthy coaches who have gone ahead to attain similar success. According to a philosopher, if I have attained success, it is because I stood on the platform of those who have attained that height. It should be noted that there’s nothing like self-made. Self-made is a false illusion we believe. Even if you’re talented/gifted or skillful in a particular industry, you’ll strongly agree with me that you’ll continue to improve yourself, and improving yourself entails practicing, and practicing entails having a coach.
Let’s take the case of study of some of the greatest and talented planners, Lionel Messi, Christian Ronaldo, Abide Pele, Augustine Okocha, Kanu Nwankow, Diego Marodona, Zinedine Zidane amongst others. These great players were all skillful and talented, but they still had to undergo numerous sections of trainings from their coaches in addition to personal training.
Let’s take another case. Usain Bolt is currently the fastest athlete on planet earth today with a record of 9:58 in the 100m and 19.19 in the 200m race. But it’s interesting to know that Usain was eliminated in Athens 2004 Olympic during the first round, but today he holds the record of the fastest record on earth in the 100m and 200m men’s race. The moral in this case is that though you are talented and gifted, you must continually commit to process by refining your gift in order to be valuable otherwise you will remain ordinary.
In one of my articles, titled Mentors Are Life Savers. I mentioned the value and importance of mentors. The reason I’m stressing about mentors here is that you cannot reinvent the wheel. According to an African proverb, “if you want to go fast, go alone, but if you want to go far, go with a team”. The value of mentors is priceless.
In the journey of life, you need accountability partners, and mentors/coaches can serve as accountability partners in order to reach your optimal capacity. Mentors/coaches can assist in facilitating your journey to success, and will provide you opportunities which ordinarily might take you years to attain if at all, you can ever attain them.
When you decide to do things yourself or your own way, you will only operate within your limits of understanding. There are high and low principles of life. Mentors/coaches help in showing you the high principles of life. Here are four benefits of having a mentor by Udo Okonjo: Your mind will be transformed, mentors will elevate your actions and performance, they will accelerate your results, and finally, they will help you to maximize your life by reducing the grinding and hustling of life.
In your journey towards life, some of the action plans you need are: awareness, action, accountability, and commitment.
Awareness is like information. It broadens your mind, it gives you the experience to navigate through life by making the right choice. You need to take action. Action can be fast action, correct action, and mega action. To understand these concepts, you will have to attend my private masterclass or coaching session. Without action, your dreams, visions will never see the light f the day. Talk is cheap, you can say and dream whatever you like, but without taking action, they will never see the light of the day. Therefore, it is imperative you list the action or steps you need to take to get to where you want to be.
True success entails being accountable either to oneself or to somebody else. See more insights on mentors and coaches above
You need commitment. You must be willing to pay for your personal growth, financially or otherwise. You must be consistent, in your thoughts, words, and actions/deed. You must be intentional and deliberate in whatever you do. You must take strategic steps to actualize your success by studying the works of people who are more experienced than you in that industry. Read their books, attend their events. There is so much information to gain from them because all information can’t be in one source. Endeavour to meet these people in person if possible, and if given the opportunity, make sure you prepare ahead of time by way of reflecting on important questions and conversations you will like to have with them.
In conclusion, in the journey to attain success, there’s nothing like overnight success and there’s nothing like luck. Just know that life involves a process, and true success is a product of process.
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
The Defence Headquarters has said the recent kidnap incident in Oyo State was carried out by terrorists displaced from other parts of the country following intensified military operations.
The military high command stated this on Thursday while reacting to what it described as “mischievous and misleading publications” surrounding comments credited to the Defence Headquarters on the classification of terrorists and criminal elements operating in the South-West.
In a statement signed by the Director, Defence Media Operations, Maj Gen Michael Onoja, the DHQ said the attackers behind the Oyo abduction were members of the Jama’atu Ahlis Sunna Lidda’awati wal-Jihad terrorist group displaced by sustained military offensives across the country.
“The recent incidence of kidnap in Oyo State was clearly perpetrated by terrorists of the JAS Group that have been dislodged from other parts of the country due to high-intensity operations being conducted all over,” the statement read.
The DHQ denied reports suggesting it referred to terrorists operating in the South-West as ordinary criminals, insisting that such interpretations were inaccurate and misleading.
“It is, therefore, inaccurate and misleading to suggest that the Defence Headquarters, at any point, referred to vicious and violent terrorists as criminals,” Onoja stated.
The military said its earlier clarification on security developments in the South-West was aimed at providing an intelligence-based context to avoid misinformation and unnecessary panic among residents.
It also stressed that the Armed Forces of Nigeria remained committed to supporting constitutional governance and protecting democratic institutions.
“At no time did the Defence Headquarters undermine the authority of any democratically elected leader or seek to diminish the gravity of the heinous crime committed against innocent citizens by terrorist elements,” the statement added.
The DHQ further disclosed that troops remained actively deployed across affected areas in collaboration with other security agencies and local stakeholders to dismantle terrorist and criminal networks threatening national peace and stability.
“The Armed Forces of Nigeria remain resolute in dismantling all criminal and terrorist networks threatening the peace, stability and unity of the nation,” the statement said.
The clarification followed recent attacks on communities in Oriire Local Government Area of Oyo State, where armed terrorists abducted pupils, teachers and other residents from Community High School, Ahoro-Esinle.
The incident also left several persons dead, while one of the abducted teachers, Michael Oyedokun, was later killed after a video linked to the attack surfaced online.
Fresh facts have emerged over the abduction of school pupils and the killing of two teachers alongside an okada rider in Ahoro-Esiele, Oriire Local Government Area of Oyo State, as investigators uncovered how suspected informants allegedly maintained communication with the abductors through telephone conversations.
The Oyo State Police Command disclosed that investigators tracked the suspects through calls believed to have been exchanged with the bandits during and after the operation.
According to the police, the conversations allegedly contained details on how the criminals could successfully navigate routes within the National Park to hidden locations used as safe havens.
The breakthrough led to the arrest of no fewer than six suspects, who are currently in police custody and assisting security agencies with ongoing investigations into the gruesome incident.
Confirming the development on Tuesday morning, the State Police Public Relations Officer, CSP Olayinka Ayanlade, said the suspects were apprehended during coordinated security operations across different locations in the State.
“We have six suspects in custody and they are assisting the investigation,” Ayanlade said.
He added that preliminary investigations revealed that the suspects allegedly served as informants to the bandits responsible for the abduction and killings.
“Our findings showed that some of the suspects were in contact with the abductors through telephone conversations and investigators are analysing those communications as part of efforts to uncover the full network behind the crime,” he stated.
Ayanlade further disclosed that security agencies uncovered discussions allegedly centred on routes through the National Park and locations believed to have been used by the criminals as hideouts.
“The conversations contained information on how the abductors could move through the National Park undetected and reach safe locations,” he added.
The police spokesman explained that the suspects were arrested during joint operations involving the Nigerian Army, the Nigeria Police Force, the Western Nigeria Security Network codenamed Amotekun, the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), and Agro-Rangers.
“The arrests were made possible through intelligence-driven operations carried out by joint security operatives working collaboratively to dismantle the criminal network,” Ayanlade said.
He assured residents that security agencies were intensifying efforts to apprehend other fleeing members of the syndicate linked to the attack.
“We are committed to ensuring that every individual connected to this criminal act is identified, arrested and brought to justice. Investigations are still ongoing,” he said.
The incident, which claimed the lives of two teachers and an Okada rider while school pupils were abducted last Friday, has continued to generate concern among residents of the affected communities and neighbouring areas in Oyo State.
Governor of Oyo State, Seyi Makinde, has confirmed that one of the teachers abducted during the recent terrorist attack on schools in Oriire LGA of the state, has been killed in captivity.
Speaking on Sunday during a press briefing on the incident, Makinde described the situation as “difficult and challenging”, saying the state government is intensifying efforts to rescue the remaining victims.
On Friday, gunmen riding motorcycles invaded communities within the Ahoro-Esiele/Yawota axis of Oriire, Ogbomoso, and abducted students and staff members of Community High School, Ahoro-Esiele, L.A. Primary School, Esiele, and Yawota Baptist Nursery and Primary School.
The attack left an assistant headmaster, identified as Joel Adesiyan, and a commercial motorcyclist dead.
According to Makinde, a video received by the state government confirmed the killing of one of the abductees identified as a mathematics teacher.
“What we know is that seven teachers in all were abducted and unfortunately, we got a video this morning that one of the teachers, the maths teacher, was killed by the terrorists this morning,” Makinde said.
Authorities have yet to confirm the exact number of schoolchildren abducted.
In the aftermath of the incident, videos recorded from captivity began circulating on social media, showing abducted teachers pleading with the government and Nigerians for urgent intervention.
One of the viral videos featured Rachael Alamu, principal of Community High School, Esiele, appealing to the government to help secure the release of the victims before they are killed.
Makinde detailed that six persons had been arrested within the affected locality over alleged links to the attackers, and that another three “persons of interest” were also arrested in connection with the attack.
“The information available from the Commissioner of Police is that six individuals have been arrested within the locality. Some of them were believed to perhaps be informants to people running logistics for the terrorists,” he said.
Following the attack, the Oyo Police Command announced the commencement of an intensive manhunt and rescue operation involving multiple security agencies.
Makinde said personnel of the police, military, the Western Nigeria Security Network codenamed Amotekun, and local hunters were mobilised immediately to pursue the attackers.
The governor said, however, some Amotekun operatives sustained injuries after encountering improvised explosive devices planted by the terrorists during the operation.
“After the incident, Amotekun, the police, military and hunters were mobilised to go after the terrorists and it was along that line that they ran into IEDs and some of the Amotekun operatives were wounded,” he said.
Sources told TheCable that the terrorists had initially opened fire on the security operatives who were approaching the Old Oyo national park on motorcycles, causing them to flee.
“When the shooting subsided, the operatives decided to go for their motorbikes. Unfortunately, a dynamite exploded against one Amotekun corps member and he was wounded. He has been taken to the hospital for medical attention,” a source said.
“Apart from air raid, the Old Oyo National Park Area can’t be easily accessed through infantry. It’s a long distance from the Oowe River which forms a natural landmark boundary for the park. Motorcycles would have to be used for the journey, but the noise of the approaching motorcycles alerted the terrorists.”
Makinde linked the attack to increasing pressure being mounted on terrorist groups in the north-east, warning that fleeing armed groups are moving into other parts of the country, including the south-west.
“With the pressure on the terrorists in the north-east theatre, they will keep moving southwards. Today, the governor of Kwara state has spoken to me. But the problem we have is that when you have pressure in one place, we must be prepared on this side to either repel or neutralise any terrorists fleeing the pressure,” he said.
The governor harped on the need for sustained government and security presence in vulnerable communities, warning that temporary military operations without long-term security measures could leave residents exposed to future attacks.
“If all we can do is clearance operations for a week or two and leave that place, the terrorists will come back and the people will become vulnerable,” he said.
He assured residents that the state government would be deploying military and non-military strategies to secure the release of the abducted victims and tackle the growing security threat.
“We have decided that we will adopt not just the kinetic approach. We have not taken this lightly,” he added.
Makinde also appealed for calm and patience from residents, acknowledging the complexity of the operation.
“I want to appeal to everyone that we are doing everything within our power to ensure that this would be resolved quickly and we bring our children back safely, but it is a very difficult and challenging situation so there may not be quick fixes,” he added.
Source: TheCable
