‘Give thanks for what you are now, and keep fighting for what you want to be tomorrow’.
FERNANDA MIRAMONTES-LANDEROS.
Take it or leave it, no matter what you may be passing through presently, you are far better than somebody somewhere, now. This is a statement of fact.
Your present problem could be just about anything. It could be about a long time unemployment, a terminal sickness, mounting unpaid loans, imminent disaster , sad news from home, sudden death of someone dear to you , failure in a major examination, unexpected job loss, failed marriage and so on. Though what you’re passing through may be painful, yet be thankful.
Here are ten reasons you must be thankful for today.
There’s hope of a better tomorrow.
You have breath in you, some are dead.
Your experience today would someday become history.
When there’s life there’s hope.
Being thankful prolong your life.
It attracts others to you.
It helps you to get over your stress on time.
It remains the best option to keep you going.
It brings inner peace.
You’re better than someone somewhere.
Therefore be thankful for who you are, what you have and where you are while working hard to be the best you can be.
Ajiboro Ayodeji is a chartered HR Practitioner based in Lagos, Nigeria. Email: jibdej@gmail.com.Tel:2348027807452.
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
Monday, July 19, 2010
THERE’S HOPE
Don't be discouraged. It's often the last key in the bunch that opens the lock. ~Author
Unknown
That things are not working out for you the way they should at present is not enough an excuse to conclude that you’re a failure. That you’ve been jobless all these while when most of your friends are doing very well in their various endeavors is not enough for you to conclude that you’re born to suffer. Never, never, never lose hope. You’re bound to succeed until you lose hope.
One truth about life is that we all can’t achieve success following the same path or pattern in life. If one of your closest friends bought his first car at age 22 and you’re almost age 40 now and still could not afford to buy a bicycle doesn’t mean that you can’t be richer than such a friend by the time both of you clock 50. Never assume life is unfair to you when others are doing better than you’re doing at a particular point in time. This experience should only encourage you to work harder rather than result to self pity.
Anytime you’re discouraged and it seems there’s no more hope for you due to your present condition, please follow these strategies.
REFLECT ON YOUR PAST POSITIVE LIFE EXPERIENCES
No matter how ugly your present may be, I strongly believe that you have had some pleasant experiences in the past. Reflect on them. Are you jobless presently? Reflect on your positive school experiences, sound health and your wonderful friends and family members.
UTILISE MOTIVATIONAL MATERIALS
This is the time for you to really tap into the words of encouragement emanating from motivational materials in the form of tapes, books, CD’s and DVD’s. These days we have so many books written by successful motivational speakers, get hold of any good one and digest it. Doing this would really boost your morale and give you hope of a better future.
SEEK COUNSEL
You don’t have to die in silence, seek counsel. The period when hope is almost gone is the period you have to confide in trustworthy counselors. Are you are Christian? Then confide in your Pastor. Are you a student? Confide in your course adviser or school counselor. You could also confide in your parents, spouse or trusted colleagues. Never die in silence, seek counsel.
BE OPTIMISTIC
The truth about what you’re passing through is that so many people had passed through similar situation and came out successfully. Never assume you’re alone. Be positive and optimistic. Confess positively to yourself that you’re not going to die in that situation. Even if you’re HIV positive at the moment you could be healed by miracle. Who knows cure for HIV/AIDS could be discovered tomorrow. Be positive. It’s not over until it’s over. Never ever consider suicide. That situation won’t see your end.
Please do know that you have a very bright future and all that you’re passing through presently are just to give you true life experiences needed to impact and mentor others that are likely to be faced with similar challenges in the future. Say aloud: There’s hope for me.
Ajiboro Ayodeji is a chartered HR Practitioner based in Lagos, Nigeria. Email: jibdej@gmail.com.
Unknown
That things are not working out for you the way they should at present is not enough an excuse to conclude that you’re a failure. That you’ve been jobless all these while when most of your friends are doing very well in their various endeavors is not enough for you to conclude that you’re born to suffer. Never, never, never lose hope. You’re bound to succeed until you lose hope.
One truth about life is that we all can’t achieve success following the same path or pattern in life. If one of your closest friends bought his first car at age 22 and you’re almost age 40 now and still could not afford to buy a bicycle doesn’t mean that you can’t be richer than such a friend by the time both of you clock 50. Never assume life is unfair to you when others are doing better than you’re doing at a particular point in time. This experience should only encourage you to work harder rather than result to self pity.
Anytime you’re discouraged and it seems there’s no more hope for you due to your present condition, please follow these strategies.
REFLECT ON YOUR PAST POSITIVE LIFE EXPERIENCES
No matter how ugly your present may be, I strongly believe that you have had some pleasant experiences in the past. Reflect on them. Are you jobless presently? Reflect on your positive school experiences, sound health and your wonderful friends and family members.
UTILISE MOTIVATIONAL MATERIALS
This is the time for you to really tap into the words of encouragement emanating from motivational materials in the form of tapes, books, CD’s and DVD’s. These days we have so many books written by successful motivational speakers, get hold of any good one and digest it. Doing this would really boost your morale and give you hope of a better future.
SEEK COUNSEL
You don’t have to die in silence, seek counsel. The period when hope is almost gone is the period you have to confide in trustworthy counselors. Are you are Christian? Then confide in your Pastor. Are you a student? Confide in your course adviser or school counselor. You could also confide in your parents, spouse or trusted colleagues. Never die in silence, seek counsel.
BE OPTIMISTIC
The truth about what you’re passing through is that so many people had passed through similar situation and came out successfully. Never assume you’re alone. Be positive and optimistic. Confess positively to yourself that you’re not going to die in that situation. Even if you’re HIV positive at the moment you could be healed by miracle. Who knows cure for HIV/AIDS could be discovered tomorrow. Be positive. It’s not over until it’s over. Never ever consider suicide. That situation won’t see your end.
Please do know that you have a very bright future and all that you’re passing through presently are just to give you true life experiences needed to impact and mentor others that are likely to be faced with similar challenges in the future. Say aloud: There’s hope for me.
Ajiboro Ayodeji is a chartered HR Practitioner based in Lagos, Nigeria. Email: jibdej@gmail.com.
Thursday, July 15, 2010
HANDLING UNEMPLOYMENT
‘It’s not what happens to you that determines how far you will go in life; it is how you handle what
happens to you.’
…..Zig Ziglar
The period of unemployment is a very critical period in the life of whosoever is unemployed. An individual is unemployed when he or she is unable to be gainfully employed for a job he or she has been trained to do or has the skill, knowledge and capability to do effectively and efficiently.
This period could be a very difficult period depending on your age, educational background, circumstances and position. For somebody who is still living with the parents, the challenge may not be intense since parents are still responsible for meeting the basic needs of such an individual. But for a married individual whose spouse does not earn enough to take care of the home front by meeting the needs for food, shelter, school fees, clothing and utility bills, being unemployed to such a person is like living in hell. When the bread winner of a family suddenly become unemployed, such a family is bound to face difficulties, most especially in developing economies like Nigeria , where no provision exists for unemployment benefits.
In some developing countries like Nigeria, a university graduate could remain unemployed for a period of ten years. Unemployment is a serious and a global issue. The developed economies of Europe and United States are presently having their own share of large scale unemployment due to the current global economic meltdown.
We are looking at how this unemployment problem can be tackled using a personal or individual approach rather than using a national or global approach. The suggested approaches are detailed below.
BE POSITIVE
That anything that has a beginning must surely have an end is a statement of fact. There are cases of people who committed suicide while passing through the stress of unemployment. Cases of unemployment induced suicide abound in many countries of the world. This experience is always aggravated by thought of hopelessness. The first thing you should know about being unemployed no matter your age, educational attainment and status is that being unemployed is not the end of life. Whether you’re a fresh graduate or an experienced worker, be positive. Assure yourself by telling yourself repeatedly that a better offer is on the way. The benefit of remaining positive is that it makes you think less and remain open to opportunities.
DO SOMETHING
The period of unemployment is not a period to be idle. No, never be idle. It’s a period you must find something doing, even if for free. You could offer yourself up for volunteering work. You could reflect on your past experiences and write excellent newspaper articles that could benefit others. You could offer to help do some cleaning job in your community for free.
As an unemployed career person you could walk up to a nearby school and offer to give the student a career talk. Also as an unemployed fresh graduate you could organize extramural classes for students preparing for internal and external exams in your neighborhood for free or at a reduced fee. Who knows your might be attracting some high placed parent’s attention through all these activities. This is a period you must never be idle. Think of something you could do to affect live, then do it.
OPEN UP
This is a period you must never be a pretender. Let people know what you can do and what you are passing through. Some people are retrenched or made redundant due to their organization’s dwindling fortunes but they won’t tell close associates who could be of help. You are the architect of your own misfortune by not opening up. Never die in silence, open up. This is not the same as telling every Dick, Jack and Harry about it. Only confides in few close confidants.
Some people even kept it from their spouses and continue to pretend to go to work on a daily basis believing that the experience is shameful and should be kept as a top secret. No, never kept your spouse in the dark. Learn to open up.
LEVERAGE ON YOUR EXISTING NETWORK
This is a time you have to go back to the drawing board by leveraging on your existing contacts. Put calls across to your old school friends; use your alumni network to connect people. Call friends that are doing well in other industries. This is the time you must be regular at your Professional association’s meetings. Be regular at these gatherings and make superb contribution to interesting intellectual discuss. Be relevant. Show off your stuff. This will attracts the attention of most colleagues who could be of help.
Always be in constant contact with colleagues who are currently working to find out about possible job openings in their company or industry.
ADD VALUE TO YOURSELF
This is a time you really have all the times in this world. Learn new things. You could learn to play a musical instrument. You could learn about web designing. This period must be used to gain knowledge. Read more books in your chosen field; develop your writing and oral communication skills. Do research on how to pass job aptitude tests and interviews, most especially if you are a fresh graduate. Go back to your MBA reading materials and digest them for knowledge as against reading to defend a term paper or to pass exams. You must set aside a minimum of one hour each day to develop your skill, knowledge and capability in your chosen field of study.
Adding value to yourself through diligent study and learning new things if taken with all seriousness will make you sound like an authority in your next job interview.
WATCH OUT FOR OPPORTUNITIES
Never close your ears and eyes to happenings around you. Be inquisitive and be on the look out for opportunities. Opportunities that could make you a job creator rather than a job seeker could present itself.
The period of unemployment is never a period to see yourself as having little or nothing to offer. This should be a period to reflect on your God given ability by believing in yourself and be confident that you have all it takes to get an even better job than the one you have lost. Are you a fresh graduate and presently unemployed? Keep trying, you’re almost there.
Ajiboro Seth Ayodeji (ACIPM) could be contacted through dejiconsulting@yahoo.com or through jibdej@gmail.com for enquiries and suggested future topics.
ACTUALIZE YOUR DREAM
“Whatever you can do, or dream you can, begin it. Boldness has genius, power, and magic in it.”.....W.H. MURRAY.
So many people came into this world, dreamt great dreams but never live to see their dreams become a reality. The number one reason for this misfortune is excuse: I can’t do it alone. I don’t know anybody. I am too young or too old. People won’t buy into it. It’s better to start and fail than to do nothing about your dream. If you’ve got a dream; start making it a reality.
Your dream could be about just anything. It could be about starting a new business. It could be about a change of career. It could be about moving into a new market, product or service line. All your desired goals are dream and may end up as a mere dream until you do something about them. One thing with most dreams is that the more one delays their actualization; the more one tends to believe that such dreams are not achievable or realistic. Stop procrastinating, do something about your dream of a better tomorrow.
There are various ways of handling the realization of your dream. I’ll be sharing with you five ways of making your dream a reality.
Document Your Dream
The starting point in actualizing your dream is in putting it down in black and white. A dream left in one’s brain is like a castle built in the air. Get a special note for documenting you dreams or visions as they come to your mind. You could also type and save it on your computer. The greatest undoing of your dream is the failure to put it in black and white.
Test Your Dream
Some dreams are just unrealistic, but before concluding that a particular dream is not realizable, please test it. There are many ways of testing your dreams. This could be done through research, facts verification and through the determination of the legality of such a dream. Ask questions from experts, friends and others about the feasibility of such a dream. Always test the viability of your dream.
Picture Its Actualization
To achieve your dream you must have a picture of it in your subconscious mind. If you can see it, you can actualize it. A dream you can’t picture into existence, you can’t achieve. Begin to see the dream as becoming a reality. Are you dreaming of landing a job in a particular large organisation? Then see yourself as being there already.
Take Action
Nobody on earth achieve anything worthwhile by mare wishing. Do something about your dream, take action. Take actions daily that can draw you closer to your dream and aspirations in life. Do you desire to be a Chartered Accountant? Then obtain the necessary forms and start the process. Don’t just sit down wishing, do something.
Are you dreaming of becoming a business owner? Then start thinking about your business of interest. Begin to gather information about the business that interests you. Start thinking of drafting a business plan and a feasibility study. Stop wishing, take action.
Launch Out
Until your dream becomes a reality, you are yet to be there. To launch out is to make your dream become a reality. Are you dreaming of starting your own business? Don’t stop at writing a winning business plan and a feasibility study. Go ahead and incorporate that business. So many business plans are under so many peoples bed. Never allow your dream to die just like that. Document it, test it, picture it, take action on it and launch out.
So many people came into this world, dreamt great dreams but never live to see their dreams become a reality. The number one reason for this misfortune is excuse: I can’t do it alone. I don’t know anybody. I am too young or too old. People won’t buy into it. It’s better to start and fail than to do nothing about your dream. If you’ve got a dream; start making it a reality.
Your dream could be about just anything. It could be about starting a new business. It could be about a change of career. It could be about moving into a new market, product or service line. All your desired goals are dream and may end up as a mere dream until you do something about them. One thing with most dreams is that the more one delays their actualization; the more one tends to believe that such dreams are not achievable or realistic. Stop procrastinating, do something about your dream of a better tomorrow.
There are various ways of handling the realization of your dream. I’ll be sharing with you five ways of making your dream a reality.
Document Your Dream
The starting point in actualizing your dream is in putting it down in black and white. A dream left in one’s brain is like a castle built in the air. Get a special note for documenting you dreams or visions as they come to your mind. You could also type and save it on your computer. The greatest undoing of your dream is the failure to put it in black and white.
Test Your Dream
Some dreams are just unrealistic, but before concluding that a particular dream is not realizable, please test it. There are many ways of testing your dreams. This could be done through research, facts verification and through the determination of the legality of such a dream. Ask questions from experts, friends and others about the feasibility of such a dream. Always test the viability of your dream.
Picture Its Actualization
To achieve your dream you must have a picture of it in your subconscious mind. If you can see it, you can actualize it. A dream you can’t picture into existence, you can’t achieve. Begin to see the dream as becoming a reality. Are you dreaming of landing a job in a particular large organisation? Then see yourself as being there already.
Take Action
Nobody on earth achieve anything worthwhile by mare wishing. Do something about your dream, take action. Take actions daily that can draw you closer to your dream and aspirations in life. Do you desire to be a Chartered Accountant? Then obtain the necessary forms and start the process. Don’t just sit down wishing, do something.
Are you dreaming of becoming a business owner? Then start thinking about your business of interest. Begin to gather information about the business that interests you. Start thinking of drafting a business plan and a feasibility study. Stop wishing, take action.
Launch Out
Until your dream becomes a reality, you are yet to be there. To launch out is to make your dream become a reality. Are you dreaming of starting your own business? Don’t stop at writing a winning business plan and a feasibility study. Go ahead and incorporate that business. So many business plans are under so many peoples bed. Never allow your dream to die just like that. Document it, test it, picture it, take action on it and launch out.
Tuesday, July 13, 2010
POSITIVE THINKING WORKS WONDER
You are who you think you are. Think you are the best and you'll end up being the best. Think failure and you'll end a failure no matter how hard you've tried.
You are who you think you are.Think positive thoughts daily. I'll leave you with a word from David Viscott:YOU MUST BEGIN TO THINK OF YOURSELF AS BECOMING THE PERSON YOU WANT TO BE.
You are who you think you are.Think positive thoughts daily. I'll leave you with a word from David Viscott:YOU MUST BEGIN TO THINK OF YOURSELF AS BECOMING THE PERSON YOU WANT TO BE.