Two Major Things Part I

In today's world, we miss two major things everyday.

One, the value of quiet.

Everywhere is so noisy and everything is moving so fast that it is next to impossible for people to retreat daily, observe nature, take in some deep breath and savour the beauty of the one life that the benevolent Creator has given them, and follow after their purpose (or at least, spend time discovering that purpose).

It is quite unfortunate that parents and the school system contributing to the noise around. A typical child is engaged from the time he wakes up till he falls asleep at night. We are just preoccupied with work, assignments here and there, meetings and countless activities, with little or no time left for daily assessment. Not that these things are bad in themselves but there is an inherent danger in not being able to stop and think: distraction and frustration.

Little wonder life is becoming clumsy by the day and people are losing focus consistently. From an engineering standpoint, I understand that the faster a typical machine runs (and more especially if it does that with little or no break or lubrication sessions), the more heat, noise and vibration it tends to generate and the shorter it ends up living. How wise is the saying that "...in quietness and trust is your strength..." That saying of a great prophet of old ends with "...but you would have none of it." That describes our generation aptly. We just don't want to stop! And the reason for that is that most people are simply purposeless. 

Reading Rick Warren's "The Purpose-Driven Life" recently, one of the profound truths I have learnt is that in the serious matters of life, simpler is always better. Why? Because the more purpose-driven you are, the less you veer off your lane, the less you get distracted, the less you will want to do, and the less will be your perceived need for speed.

Come on, you are not competing against anyone but yourself in the race of life. The ultimate standard against which you will be measured is the standard that was set for you, and you alone - and that's why being purpose-driven helps you to keep it simple. Purpose helps you to know the difference between what you really need and what you merely want. Purpose shows you the line between what matters and what does not.

Unfortunately, as important as it is, purpose is absolutely noiseless. It associates only with the quiet. Perhaps much more unfortunately, many of us erroneously believe that when we are achieving our purpose, we should generate some noise in form of ovations and loud events. That is not necessarily true - but it is not necessarily false either, only that it is more false than true! In innovation studies it is understood artifacts are not innovation themselves, they are just the embodiments required to sell the innovation. So events and activities and accolades and whatever are not purpose in themselves, they are mere artifacts that serve to embody purpose, they are vehicles through which purpose is expressed. It is rather important to pursue purpose than artifacts. A life that is purpose-driven will announce itself, taking along with it the artifacts.

What then does one do to maintain some level of quietness in this noisy age? First admit the need to cut down on your excesses as an individual. There are so many things you do each day that you can do without. Then take time off each day to do nothing but think. You have to decide on your own what to think about, but remember - good or bad, you eventually produce what you think predominantly about. Above all, be committed to your purpose, in case you have found it. If not, then that's where to begin. 

Whatever goals you set and even achieve do not count much towards your fulfillment if they don't contribute to your reason for living. It does not matter how many times you can use an axe to peel oranges, until it hews wood, it has not achieved much.  

No excuse, really

It's about 5am and I've not slept a bit since last night. Doing what? Studying, reflecting and thinking. My attention was also partly on the TV - CNN precisely. The news of the Tucson, Arizona mass killing that took place yesterday had lingered almost all night. When I heard the name of the suspect for the first time at 5:09am, I typed it into my search engine and got hundreds of thousands of hits - from the relevant to the downright nonsensical. One of the top hits had a profound effect on me. There was already a full-blown wiki page complete with detailed references! 

'How could anyone have done this so quick?' I asked myself. 

'Well, it's the information age,' I answered myself.

And that is really true; that wiki page demonstrates the power and speed of information in this age that we live in for two important reasons:

1. On most interest websites or information portal, someone is responsible for updating content for some pecuniary gains. On Wikipedia, to the best of my knowledge, that does not happen. It's an 'open day' so if something comes up on wiki, it must mean that an interested person simply put it there.
2. Considering that the event occurred at about 1700hrs GMT (and I am writing this approximately 12 hours later), the wiki page came up in record time, kind of.

So what am I getting at? Whatever information you need to move forward this year, believe it or not, someone has put it out there. And every piece of knowledge you require is readily available because now people talk about things as they happen. If you did not realise it before, well, I am now telling you that 'thou art inexcusable, o man.' Just look around and you'd get all the knowledge you need. But like I did with that piece of news, you've got to look; things don't just happen, people make them! So if your typical excuse is still along the lines of 'I don't know...' then my news for you is that 'you have no excuse, really.'

 

As the year begins...

'...a deadly blast, just after midnight. Nearly 72 were killed and many more were injured...'

Did you hear that? It took place in an Egyptian church! In Nigeria on Christmas eve and New Year's eve it also happened. Remember the words of Jesus in Luke 13:2,4. No one is better than anybody...'but time and chance happens to them all'

As the year begins, thank God for where you are - wherever that is - and stop complaining!

If you're dissatisfied then do something and don't just stand there whining like a kid!!!

Going...going...gone!

Happy New Year.

If you have ever been at an auction before, then the statement that forms the title of this piece is not new to you. I have heard it a couple of times before and I think I understand how it works. The person directing an auction waits for people to call out their bids in turn and when he is satisfied or a higher price seems not to be coming, he shouts 'Going...going...gone!'

During the two 'goings' a bid would still be valid but once 'gone' is said, a bell usually sounds and that's it, the price is fixed and it does not matter how high a price anyone calls, it is invalid and cannot be taken into account. Why? Because the time of bidding is gone, and in fact the item on sale is 'gone' to whoever called the last bid before the bell was sounded. A new item then comes on and everyone interestd starts to bid.

There are two important things to note here.

1. There is a time when it is too late to do anything about the outcome of an event.

2. The end of an event necessarily marks the beginning of another one. 

If you are reading this now, then you're in 2011, no doubt; but you should also know that the time that you can do anything about how your 2010 ends (or rather, ended) is gone. If you don't believe that, try to alter what you earned in November 2010 in the books and see if you would not be charged with fraud! The moral here is that once an era is ended, you can't influence it any more. That's why past history cannot be re-written. It cannot be changed, for instance, that Thomas Edison 'perfected' - and is generally credited with inventing - the incandescent light bulb. 

Someone said that you may not have a brand new beginning but you can start afresh from where you are and have a brand new ending. The wisdom here is that if you want to change the outcome of an event, the time to do that is not after the event. Does any coach change the result of a match after it's been played? So, if you want 2011 to end in a way different from 2010, then start doing things differently now. Do you realise that from 12 midnight today, the first 'going' sounded. The year 2011 is already hours short (and maybe days, weeks or even months short by the time you are reading this) so 'what you have to do, do quick', like that old poet said. Therefore, if you think your 2010 could have ended better, why don't you start doing the things that will bring about the improvements you desire now. 

I tell you this, if you repeat exactly the same things you did in 2010 from now on, you will get exactly the same results by the time this year is ending - maybe even worse due to diminishing returns! I totally agree with the sage who wrote that a definition of madness (or insanity, if you like) is to keep doing the same things and expect different results. Something has to change in your approach if the results you get must improve. Read that additional book, walk that extra distance to take that extra class, pay that extra amount to take that extra course, work a few extra hours or spend much less time lazing around; just do it, whatever you need to do to make this year different.

Believe it or not, it is never too late to start. Sam Walton was already 44 when the first Wal-Mart store opened, Larry King started 'Larry King Live' at 52, Allan Stewart was 91 when he got his LLB, Jenny Wood-Allen completed the London Maratohon at age 91, Edgar Dowse got his PhD at 93...and the list continues. For you it should not be that late, so if someone asks you what time it is, you should answer, 'It is my time!'

But the only time you've got is NOW, and remember, once it's 'gone' you can't help it anymore.