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Food for Living: Your Season is Coming
By Henry Ukazu
Dear Destiny Friends,
To succeed in life endeavours, everyone needs clear cut opportunities to utilize. But opportunities don’t come easy, and most times, one needs to go all out to create them. When opportunity comes, the big question one needs to ask himself is, is this for me? I say this because sometimes when opportunity comes, and the recipient is not equipped to handle it, it has the capacity to cause more harm than good.
In other situations, when one gets an opportunity, he can decide to take it up head-on and challenge himself towards positive delivery just as some schools of thought opine that when an assignment, job or opportunity, beyond one’s grasp, is given, it’s advisable to take it, learn through it and deliver exponentially. While all these have been proved, it is important for one to have a discerning spirit so as to understand when to take up an opportunity, and when to let it slide.
Personally speaking, I remember during my formative years in the USA, when I was privileged to be the Public Relations Officer for the Nigerian Lawyers Association, I wasn’t mentally, academically and socially ready to take on the tasks that come with the office. In all sincerity and humility, I took a risk to try my luck and as fate would have it, nobody applied for the position, I was literally elected unopposed.
When it was time to do the job, I had a hard time. My writing was indeed horrible. I literally learned on the job. In retrospect, if I am asked if I will do the same thing again, I will probably say yes simply because it afforded me the opportunity to network locally and internationally. Most of the resourceful people I know today were facilitated by the position. The position also enabled me to fail, and learn fast because I know that if I fail, the shame will first rub off on me.
Why am I saying this? The opportunity I got serving the Nigerian Lawyers Association didn’t come to me, I had to create it by taking a risk. Be advised, I was literally new in the USA, and yet to acclimatize with their writing style and professional lifestyle. Assuming I had to wait for a perfect time to take the opportunity, most of the opportunities I have today may not have been feasible. So, the opportunity cost for me was the associated mistakes I made due to my limited writing and human relationship skills.
Why is this explanation relevant to this article? As human beings, we all seek for opportunities to showcase what we have. Sometimes, when we have these opportunities and utilize them, we don’t get to shine, get recognized or even rewarded handsomely. There might be several reasons this may happen. It may be a case of not being prepared or the right season for one to be appreciated is not yet due.
I say this because we all have our time to shine. Your time and my time may not be the same. It’s imperative for one to understand there’s a season for everything on earth. In politics, sometimes certain candidates win an election due to the pulse of the nation or global practices. Every artist, athlete, pastor, politician, wealthy man, boss or employee has their time to shine. When one’s time and season comes, it can’t be stopped because the universe will conspire with humanity to bring it to existence.
The truth is, there is a time and season for everything. A time to be born and time to die. There is a dry season and a rainy season. There’s Summer, Fall, Winter and Spring season. There’s also a time to sow and time to harvest. All these seasons have what they are known for, and so it is difficult to manifest positively and successfully if your time has not come, unless by divine intervention. When you do what you are supposed to do in your season, you will be recognized and celebrated.
As an employee, your time and season for recognition and promotion is coming; as a student your time for celebration is coming, as a believer, your time for blessing is coming; as an entrepreneur, your time for business expansion is coming; as a broke person, your time for financial wealth is coming; as an athlete, your time for celebration is coming. The list is endless. So, pending when your time comes, continue to work on yourself by doing the needful.
It’s also instructive to note that if you manifest before your time, you will suffer failure, unfruitfulness and pain. This almost happened to me when I was the Public Relations Officer for the Nigerian Lawyers Association. To be honest, I screwed up sometimes, and had a hard time navigating my way. This is part of the price one pays for not being prepared for a job. My only saving grace was that I had superiors, who sometimes did the needful, and mentors who were like elders and fathers to me. These mentors encouraged me.
When faced with this scenario of undue manifestation, sit back and cooperate with your time and season. Just like you can’t rush destiny, you don’t have to rush your time. If you manifest at the right time, you will experience unprecedented blessings, divine location, open doors and breakthroughs. When your time and season come, you will be unstoppable. You cannot be extinguished, relegated or ignored. No power can cover or stop you. You will shine and blossom. Any power fighting against you will fail and be extinguished.
During your season everything will work for your good. Wherever you may be, favour will locate you, but if it is not your season, your sweat and labour won’t be noticed, remembered, recognized, honored and located. Ecclesiastes 3: 1-9 says there’s time for everything.
Question: Are you working according to your time? Are you working in your season? To know if you are working in your season, check if you are getting favours and recognition. If the answer is no, be mindful of your time so you don’t waste time and opportunities.
In conclusion, just like the time clock ticks, everybody’s time and season is different. So, while applying patience and perseverance in your pursuit of happiness, also ask the Lord to locate and bless the works of your hands at the right time because as you rightly know, the Book of life says every Good thing comes from the Lord.
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
By Henry Ukazu
Dear Destiny Friends,
Wealth is of the mind, and not necessarily the amount of money in one’s pocket or in the bank. It takes a great mind to know that if the only thing one has is money, that person is poor because at a stage in life, money may not play any role. It is worth noting that for one to pay for everything they need in life, it’s either they are poor, or you haven’t invested in anyone.
It’s always good therefore, to live for humanity. Life is not about ‘me’, but about humanity. When you consider other people, life works out for you. This is a timeless principle I have adopted overtime, especially when I see a progressive mind who is hungry to learn.
One of the reasons most people are poor is simply because they have the wrong mindset, ideology and information. It’s instructive to know that when you learn well, you stand a better chance of earning well because the more you know, the more you get paid. Nobody pays anyone what they desire, but what they deserve.
Let me explain a little; a poor mind will think a rich man is wasting money by paying triple for a three-bedroom apartment in a porsche neighborhood while a rich mind will think he’s paying for security, and peace of mind.
Again, a poor mind will think a rich man is being extravagant when he buys a luxury perfume or watch when he can buy a decent perfume which ordinarily will perform the same service, but a wealthy mind knows that in the real world, life is governed by perception. According to Dr. Joe Abah, “as a man, there are three things you shouldn’t compromise: solid watch, good shoes and nice perfume”. He further went on to state you can be as casual as you like but once those three things are present, you don’t need to tell anyone you are decently comfortable.
Do you see that life is not about how much you have, but how you manage what you have, but more importantly, how you people perceive you. Some people might have money, but they will find it difficult to invest in their outlook by buying decent clothes, perfumes, shoes and watches.
Another great source of wealth is information. Like I always say, information is power. If you are not informed, you are ill-informed, and once you are ill-informed, you can’t perform because information leads to reformation and transformation. So, it’s fair to say information leads to formation. You are a product of what you know.
It’s sad that many people don’t take time to invest in themselves by buying books of interest, paying for certification courses to enhance their knowledge, or even volunteering their time to intern to learn how great or successful people think.
When rich minds invest their minds to seek knowledge to gain information and knowledge which will set them apart from their contemporaries, they tend to gain access to opportunities in which they can earn decent money, entitled minds will begin to beg for money. That’s poverty mindset.
It should be noted, nobody owes you anything, most people worked hard to get to where they are today. They didn’t succeed because they looked nice, or luck favored them. Yes, those might be contributory factors, but the sacrosanct truth remains that, in civilized climes, they did the work, after all, luck is opportunity meeting preparation. If they were not prepared, the opportunity would have slipped by, and they would not have succeeded.
When we talk of wealth, it doesn’t only relate to money, wealth can also relate to how one thinks, speaks, acts, and prays. All these play critical roles in defining a human being. According to the Bible in Proverbs 17: 28, “Even a fool is considered wise if he keeps silent, and discerning when he holds his tongue”. So if you are unsure about something, it is better to keep quiet because when you open your mouth, you tell the world who you are. So, when you meet a great mind, be careful how you engage them. That’s why it’s generally stated that it takes a minute for a great man to know if he likes someone who is seeking an opportunity. These great minds have six sense perception. They have the discerning minds to see through your mind.
There was a story I recently read from Dr. Femi Otedola’s book, “Making it Big”. The story is that of a young man who was trying to strike a deal with the business mogul. He came in an inferior car and was looking for a multi-million naira contract, Dr. Femi Otedola, being a shrewd businessman, evaluated the man and priced the him low, forcing him to grudgingly accept.
When the contact was sealed and the young man was about to leave, Dr. Femi called him back and asked him, do you know I priced you low? The man said no. Dr. Otedola said, it doesn’t make business sense to come with a cheap car to seek a multi-million business contract. What that really means is that you ought to dress the way you want to appear. Mr. Otedola, went on to inform him that in life, especially in business, perception rules.
Did you see it would have been better for the man to come in a decent car even though it doesn’t belong to him because he wouldn’t have been prized low. As a matter of fact, his value would have been elevated. The car opened a lot of canker worms about his mindset. Did you see that this statement corroborates with what the Bible stated in Proverbs 17:28.
The power of the mind can’t be overemphasized. Mindset cuts across every corner of our life. My late dad used to own a hospital with his brother, the motto of the hospital was “we care, but God cures”. That to me was very inspiring to know that doctors and nurses were limited in their thought process.
Furthermore, I once visited a general hospital in my hometown in Nigeria, each time I visited the hospital to see a patient, I discovered there’s always a gospel song in the background with a melodic soothing message to comfort everyone. In all honesty, even if one has given up hope of recovering, the song is capable of restoring hope. Again, that’s the power of the mind.
The moral here is that the mind controls everything. Napoleon Hill stated in his famous book, “Think and Grow Rich”, that “whatsoever the mind can conceive, believe, it can achieve it’.
In conclusion, if you want to be wealthy, please consider working on your mindset because that’s where everything, including success and failure start and end.
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
Three Nigerian secondary schools are in the ring for the grand prize of N5m in the ongoing Glo Innov8 National STEM competition for girls in Senior Secondary Schools across the country.
The three top finalists were selected for their originality and innovation in the different entries for the competition. A total of 20 secondary schools were picked from over 200 schools which registered for the competition. After a series of considerations, 10 of them made it to the semifinal from which three; Ephraim High School, Isolo Campus, Lagos; Regina Pacis International School, Onitsha, Anambra State; and Peakfield Academy, Jos, Plateau State eventually coasted home to the finals.
Schools from Plateau, Kano, Lagos, Rivers, Edo, Borno, Kebbi, Nasarawa, Ondo, Oyo, Anambra, FCT, Delta, Kaduna and Adamawa states had signified intentions to participate following a call for entries by Glo Foundation, Globacom’s corporate social responsibility arm as part of its celebration of the 2025 International Day of the Girl Child.
Glo Innov8, a STEM-driven challenge, has scheduled prizes worth N5 million to the three schools in the finals. The competition “is geared at inspiring young girls to Compete, Innovate and Win, while also strengthening their confidence and expanding their knowledge in STEM subjects”, Glo Foundation explained.
The eventual overall winning school will go home with a cash prize of N2,000,000 while the 2 students representing the school will each get a laptop. The Teacher/Mentor/STEM Coordinator also gets N200,000.
The schools that come second and third places and their Teachers/Mentors/STEM Coordinators will also receive mouth-watering consolation prizes.
The three female judges of the virtual phase of selection of the top 20 schools said they were excited by the quality of presentations by the competing schools. One of them, Tosin Olabode said: “I was particularly impressed by the prototype presentations from some schools. They demonstrated that they had done their homework”.
In the same vein, Amina Gabriel disclosed that she was thrilled by the variety of ideas that the schools came up with. “The schools presented innovative solutions tackling issues in agriculture, security, waste management, and firefighting. The top 10 schools showcased outstanding prototypes, from apps to robots, making the judging process truly competitive. I’m grateful to Glo Foundation for the opportunity to serve and support young girls in STEM”, she said.
According to Sharon Ibejih, the third judge, “This competition has showcased a highly competitive next generation of women leaders in STEM. This was an excellent exercise and a means to encourage more students in STEM to develop problem-solving and innovative thinking skills”.
The overall winning school will emerge at an event set to hold later this year at the Mike Adenuga Centre (Alliance Française), Ikoyi, Lagos.
The leader of Indigenous People of Biafra (IPoB), Nnamdi Kanu, has filed a motion to stop the judgment of the Federal High Court, Abuja, in his trial for alleged terrorism.
Justice James Omotosho, on November 7, fixed November 20 for judgment on the case.
The judge fixed the date after Kanu’s defence was foreclosed following his insistence that he would not enter his defence under a repealed law.
However, in the motion on notice marked: FHC/ABJ/CR/383/2015, he personally filed, the IPoB leader sought seven reliefs.
In the application dated November 10 and filed same date, Kanu sought an order arresting the delivery of judgment in charge no: FHC/ABJ/CR/383/2015.
The document was made public on Tuesday.
In it, he alleged that the proceedings were conducted under a repealed and non-existent statute and in disobedience to the Supreme Court’s directive contrary to Section 287(1) CFRN 1999.”
He sought a declaration that by virtue of Section 287(1) CFRN, the trial court was constitutionally bound to give effect to the Supreme Court’s finding that count 15 (now count 7) “does not exist in law,” and its failure rendered all subsequent proceedings null and void.
He also sought a declaration that the court’s failure to take judicial notice of the repeal of the 2013 Terrorism Act, contrary to Section 122 Evidence Act 2011, vitiates all steps taken thereunder.
The IPOB leader equally sought a declaration that by virtue of Section 76(1)(d)(iii) of the Terrorism (Prevention and Prohibition) Act 2022, the Federal High Court lacked jurisdiction to try him in the absence of proof that the alleged conduct constituted an offence under Kenyan law or of any Kenyan judicial validation or extradition order.
Besides, Kanu sought “a declaration that the plea purportedly taken on March 29, under a repealed and non-existent statute and in violation of Section 220 ACJA 2015 is void and incapable of conferring jurisdiction.
