News
Food for Living: Your Value is Your Influence
By Henry Ukazu
Dear Destiny Friends,
When you hear the word value, what comes to your mind? Value means different things to different people. To an academic, value might mean their academic credentials; to an employer, value might mean what a prospective employee might bring to the table; to a married partner or someone in a relationship, their value might be their qualities; to a real estate agent, value might mean the net worth of a house, and to an entrepreneur; it might be their asset.
In our contemporary society, when the word value is mentioned, many people think of money, but in reality, value is more than money. Value has a lot to do with your personality and intrinsic qualities which defines you. Value can be regarded as life because it is what you place on someone or something that will determine the respect or recognition that you will give to it. If you value time, you will endeavor to keep to time, if you value education, you will do your best to get a decent grade or education, if you value life, you will do your best to treat human beings fairly.
In business, your value is your bargaining power, when you have great value, you will be able to negotiate well. It’s sad to note that sometimes we undervalue ourselves and sell ourselves cheap just because we need certain opportunities. Your true value remains is in who you are and not what people think about you. When you truly know who are, you won’t be deterred due to the setbacks and vicissitudes of life.
If you want to gain more in life, have to produce results. Nobody will pay you more than you deserve. In your potential resides your value. Your capability in life has a lot to do with your mindset. According to Henry Ford, “if you think you can, you are right, if you think you can’t you are right”. Nobody knows you more than you know yourself. Your value and potential is intangible, you can’t see, but you can feel it. Only visionary people with the eyes of an eagle and see the value and potential in your being.
To determine your value, you must know what you are willing to give up and what you can accept to make a deal come through. For instance, if you have a desire to attain a certain ambition in life, you must sacrifice certain interests. Also, if as an upright man, you are asked to accept a kickback/bribe, whatever you demand or accept to be paid you is your value.
Your value does not have to do with where you are, it has a lot to do with where you are heading. So, you might be doing a dirty job or menial job to foot the bills, but that doesn’t define you. I remembered working as a security officer for many years in the US while doing my graduate program in New York Law School and even after my program, just because I couldn’t find a befitting job. I didn’t quit because I know one day an opportunity will present itself which ultimately came to pass.
So, this is to encourage you to hang in there, gain the experience, knowledge, and network wherever you are, you never can tell when it will come in handy. Each and every one of us has a different path to life. What’s important is to appreciate the journey and inherent lessons.
There are so many varieties of value. What Mr. A might value might be different from what Mr. B. might value. As human beings, we have different tastes. The same is applicable to different tribes, countries, and continents. What one tribe, country, or continent might value, might not be appreciated in another location.
Knowing your true value will help you in every aspect of business and life and this can only happen when you believe in yourself. Remember, if nobody believes you, believe in yourself. You need to believe in yourself before people will believe in you. Your confidence in life has a way of attracting people to you and when people believe in you, they can key into your vision. That’s how great leaders lead.
Value has a lot to do with location and how you communicate your thoughts. For instance, a bottle of water might be worth $5 in a store, but it might be sold for $10 in a hotel and $20 at the airport. It’s instructive to note that it’s the same brand of bottle and the same bottle, the only thing that changes is the location. The moral of this post is that when you are not celebrated or feel worthless in a place, have the courage to leave the scene and go to a place where you will be celebrated. Surround yourself with people who see your value and celebrate you.
In conclusion, work on adding value to your life regardless of any path you have chosen in life. As a lady, man, student, politician, businessman, pastor, parent, etc., strive to add value to your life because it will go a long way to enhance your life.
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
News
Food for Living: The Insatiable Nature of Man
By Henry Ukazu
Dear Destiny Friends,
There’s no doubt that human beings by nature are insatiable. When we get one opportunity, we always look for another. When we attain one height, we always look for another accomplishment. Isn’t it true that the end of one mountain is the beginning of another.
However, I don’t think it’s selfish for anyone to dare to succeed.
Being ambitious doesn’t make one an opportunist or disloyal. It all depends on one’s perception or outlook to life. It’s just natural for one to dream big. It’s only ugly when the process one chooses to achieve his desires becomes dirty and nasty.
According to a former Nigerian presidential candidate and seasoned Economist, Mr. Peter Obi, “if you must be referred to as “Your Excellency”, then the process through which you arrived in office must be excellent”.
If you desire to be reckoned with on the journey of existence, you must be legitimately hungry for success. One’s hunger for success will facilitate the drive to accomplish great tasks despite daunting obstacles posing as challenges.
When one has this mindset, one will not be bothered by the noise which serves as obstacles and challenges along the way. Negative and weak minds are always concerned on why something won’t work. They tend to focus their energy and reasons on the obstacles facing them. But great and productive minds always focus their energy on the reasons why it will work. This is the spirit of an insatiable mind who is a goal- getter.
It’s instructive to note that we can’t please everyone. According to Bill Cosby, a famous actor, “I don’t know the key to success, but the key to failure is trying to please everyone.” Isn’t it true that when you talk, people will still talk about you, when you don’t talk, people will talk about you, so whether you talk or not, people will still judge you, so, do what’s best for you. There’s nothing you can do to please human beings. Your best option is to live your best life.
To understand how the insatiable nature of man works, one must be oneself. You don’t have to “please” anyone. Be yourself, and don’t try to be like anyone just to curry favour. It’s important to note that when you are yourself, the people that matter will come through for you, and the people that don’t matter will gradually find the bearing in another space because those that truly care don’t bother and those that bother don’t really matter in the grand scheme of things.
Life has truly taught me to focus on the important things of life as opposed to the mundane things. It’s truly sad to see people spending more time on the little things of life, and spending little time on the important things of life. That’s just a misplaced priority.
When you are yourself, the best people can do is to copy or imitate your style. They can never imitate your creativity nor can take your originality from you.
We live in a world or society where people don’t generally care or show empathy. Most people tend to live around themselves, their family, and close associates. They generally find it hard to lift a finger to assist others for reasons best known to them. Rev. Fr. Ejike Mbaka once said, “we live in a wicked generation”, re-echoing the voices of a lot of people of the world. Some people in authority just have criminal expertise in amassing wealth of opportunities meant for the citizens without thinking of the citizens they are meant to serve.
It’s worthy of note that not everyone will like you nor support your work, but when you find people who truly care about you; please hold them tight. This is because despite having family members you have shown love and compassion, they might not still appreciate you even if you lay your life for them, they will still find something to say. Again, this is the insatiable nature of man.
It’s okay for everyone not to like you, normalize living your life for God, yourself, family and those that care about you. If everyone likes you, you have a problem.
Did you know that you can get a new family from friends, strangers, and acquaintances? These sets of people might appreciate you more than your own family members. They might not demand or under appreciate you like your family members and close friends or associates. Any little support you give them will be highly appreciated. Their focus is to see you do better.
In conclusion, as you desire to succeed in life, never give in to failure until you have made your last attempt, and never make your last attempt until you succeed. This literally means whatever you desire, dream it, think it, say it, and believe you can achieve it. This principle is generally applicable to relationships, businesses, family, personal and professional development.
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
News
Court Temporarily Blocks Trump’s Executive Order Ending US Birthright Citizenship
A federal judge in the United States, on Thursday, put a temporary block on President Donald Trump’s attempt to restrict birthright citizenship.
The ruling imposes a 14-day halt on the enforcement of one of the most controversial executive orders Trump signed hours after being sworn into office for a second term.
It comes after lawsuits were filed by a total of 22 states, two cities and numerous civil rights groups.
“This is a blatantly unconstitutional order,” senior US District Judge John Coughenour was reported as saying during the hearing in Washington State.
“I’ve been on the bench for over four decades, I can’t remember another case where the question presented is as clear as this one is,” said Coughenour, who was appointed to the bench by a Republican president, Ronald Reagan.
Birthright citizenship is fundamental to America’s national identity, with the 14th Amendment to the US Constitution decreeing that anyone born on US soil is a citizen.
It says, in part: “All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside.”
Trump’s order was premised on the idea that anyone in the US illegally, or on a visa, was not “subject to the jurisdiction” of the country, and therefore excluded from this category.
AFP
News
Appeal Court Upholds Death Sentence on Ramon Adedoyin for Murder of Timothy Adegoke
The Court of Appeal sitting in Akure, Ondo State capital has upheld the death sentence of Ramon Adedoyin, a prominent businessman and hotelier, for his involvement in the murder of one Timothy Adegoke, a former postgraduate student of the Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Ile-Ife, Osun State.
Delivering the judgment on Thursday, the court affirmed the earlier verdict of the Osun State High Court, which had sentenced Adedoyin to death.
“The judgment of the High Court of Osun State stands. Adedoyin’s appeal is dismissed in part,” the court declared in part.
The Court of Appeal, however, set aside some aspects of the lower court’s orders, including the forfeiture of the Hilton Hotel and the order for Adedoyin to pay for the education of Adegoke’s children.
Furthermore, the court ruled that it had no jurisdiction to impose penalties outside the statutory provisions
Adegoke’s death was reported in November 2021 after his corpse was found at the Hilton Honours Hotel in Ile-Ife, Osun State, where he had lodged.
The hotelier had travelled from Abuja for an examination at a distance learning centre in Moro, Osun State on November 5 of that year.
He had checked into the hotel but was reported missing after two days. However, Adegoke’s body was found days later, leading to a probe that linked his death to Adedoyin and others.
In May 2023, Adedoyin and others were sentenced to death after they were found guilty of murder and conspiracy to murder.
But dissatisfied with the judgement, Adedoyin approached the Appeal court to dismiss the sentence and conviction.
The court of appeal, on Thursday, however, upheld the conviction and death sentence of the hotelier.