INSPIRED TODAY: The Borders Of Genius

Last week we spoke on attitude and this week we will be considering what I call The Borders of Genius. First of all let us look into the word borders. A border is a boundary or limit, a sort of demarcation or extent. While genius means to be very clever or original. It also means someone who has a very special mental capacity or possessing extraordinary intelligence or skill.

So, the borders of genius is the extent to which an extraordinary intelligence can be utilised. But you would ask. Could there be an extent to intelligence? Is there any problem intelligence cannot solve?

Someone once said, genius is 1% inspiration and 99% perspiration. It means that the extent of your genius is the extent of your perspiration. The extent to which you can stay at a task, persevering till you get it done. It is one thing to have a brilliant idea. Or an intelligent idea, by inspiration. And it is another thing to be able to go through the process of bringing that idea to reality.

Most times, the process is always a tedious process, and the genius must be capable of  going through the process. 90% of the people who shaped our world into what it is today with their discoveries and invention, their art and music, did not get it right the first time they tried. They made sure to repeat the process over and again, learning from their mistakes till they attained perfection.

It is not the inspiration that solves the problem, it is the inspiration plus perspiration. What are your hands on, in this period? What have you been inspired to do? Perhaps when you began, you presumed it will be an easy ride along the slope but you have realised that it isn't as easy as you thought. You are contemplating  abandoning it. You have reached the borders of your own genius.

Everyone is a genius, because everyone can be inspired and everyone has the ability to perspire. But there's one thing that separates the geniuses that changed the world from the rest—their genius had no borders. They perspired till they got it and even till they died. Albert Einstein, Thomas Edison, Nicola Tesla, Antonio Vilvadi, Wolfgang AmadeusMozart, Michelangelo, L. Da Vinci, Galileo Galilei, Bill Gates, Steve Jobs, etc. The list is long and their names wouldn't be forgotten in a short while. Your name can be there too, you can etch your name on that Hall of Fame, but to do that, you must give wings to your genius and let it fly. Let it know no boundaries and borders, for where your imagination meets perseverance, you would have found God.

INSPIRED TODAY: The Attitude That Wins

Attitude they say, determines your altitude. That is, your attitude determines how high you fly. If this statement is considered true, then attitude is something we must take a minute or two to consider. According to the English dictionary, attitude is defined as a disposition or state of mind. so, your attitude towards life is your disposition towards life or your state of mind towards life. Better still it is your mind set towards life.

Haven established what attitude is, let us define what it means to win. The dictionary defines win as a verb which means to triumph or achieve victory. It means to defeat or overcome an obstacle. That points us to the fact that there cannot be victory without challenges, battles, or wars. You cannot win except you go through an ordeal, no matter how easy.

Now, we can confidently go ahead and say that the attitude that wins means the disposition or state of mind that triumph over an obstacle. What is the attitude that wins? Or what are the characteristics of an attitude that wins? The attitude that wins is the attitude that takes the stand of ‘no fear.’ The attitude that wins is the attitude that shows a willingness to learn, from his/her own mistakes, as well as that of others. It is the attitude that talks less and listens more.

Think outside the box, they often say, but i beg to differ. The attitude that wins is the attitude that thinks as though the box does not exist. It is the attitude that never gives up, that never quits. It is the attitude that always finds a way. It is the attitude that takes responsibility. The attitude that wins is the attitude that knows exactly what it wants, why it wants it and how to get it. It is the attitude that remains consistent in and out of season. You must adopt these attitudes if you don’t have them. You must make them yours—what defines you—in order to achieve success.

Your attitude is your passport to greatness. That is, with bad attitudes there are heights you can’t reach in life. This is because your attitude is what will keep you there. Even if you gate crash on success, and you lack a good character, you will find yourself back to square one.

Dear friends, look at your life, search deep within yourself. What are those attitudes that will deter you from success? Is it indifference? Is it arrogance? Is it fraudulence? Is it Complacency, lethargy, and procrastination? No one will attain success with these kinds of attitudes. 2016 is a good year and a lot of people had resolutions about what they want to change in their job, business, family, etc. Only few people, those who really desire success and thirst for it made resolutions about their attitudes. It is not too late. The time to act is now!!!

INSPIRED TODAY: Lessons From The Palm

Life is full of moments we can describe as high as low. Everyone goes through these moments. The street hawker and the company executive. School pupils and the teachers. The commoner and the politician.

     Times like these are times when things don't go as planned. When it seems as though the whole universe has ganged up against you. When every step you take seems to move you five steps backward, and you're caught between staying stagnant and taking steps—that seem to take you backward. You wonder if there's a difference between backward and stagnant, in this ever progressing world.

     They are times when you take arms against your sea of troubles and recieve the same blows from your own strike, as though you are the trouble itself. You're confused, the boomerang is deceitful.

     They are times when the only option that seems to present itself, is to Quit. To turn around and take that exit. It is the decision to face the devil rather than the deep blue sea. All doors shut except the exit door. Everything you read spells "Quit ."
     In times like these, what we need to do is relax, close our eyes, breathe and learn from the palm tree. The palm tree is a tree that is known to be very resilient. What are the qualities that the palm tree possess, that makes it so resilient?

     Palm trees flourish in extremely hot climates. We need to be able to take the heat whenever life brings it to us. The palm tree doesn't quit by drying up. It adapts and stands till its over.

     In times of drought and dry seasons, the palm uses its deep root system to search for water in the deep recesses of the ground. When other trees are drying up and dieing, the palm tree goes down in search of nourishment and survives. It never quits. It's roots are deep, its trunk is strong, it is flexible. How deep are your roots? How deep within can you go to find nourishment when life presents drought? You must be able to look within to find joy, happiness and encouragement when circumstances present reasons for it.

     Like palm trees we must learn to be flexible during the storms of life. We must learn that even though we bend we must not break. The palm can bend and waver to and fro during a storm and an observer will consider it as weak, while other trees remain stout and rigid in the storm, but the palm still survives all of them. Why is this so? It's flexibility. In as much as we are not to conform to every situation we experience we must learn to adjust for every new situation.

     We must learn to use the storms and heats of life to our benefits, like the palm. It faces a lot of hurricanes, monsoons and other types of storms yet its trunk grows stronger, taller  and it become more beautiful.

     We must master, just like the palm, tbe ability to bear fruit in and out of season, regardless of the weather conditions. Irrespective of the conditions of the outer circumstances we must master the ability to produce result.

     Theses qualities that the palm poseses, explains the reason why it is used to symbolise victory, triumph and success because the palm goes through a lot of challenges, yet it comes out tops. Dear friends, what are you going through today? Look at the palm and learn from it. Quitting is not an option. Quitting is death. Just like the palm you must determine not to give up, not to cave in, not to quit, not to die, not to fail, until your job is done and the victory is won. Your job is to produce results.

INSPIRED TODAY: A Place Where Wisdom Rules

A professor of mechanical engineering once had a problem with his vehicle, so he called an auto-mechanic whose name was John. When John did a check on the car, he told the professor to kick. "Yes I'm kicking" said the professor.
"Nooo" John screamed "kick it well, don't you know how to kick?"
"I'm damn right kicking it" said the professor —of mechanical engineering. And then the car worked.

What was baffling about the incident was that, the professor of engineering ought to know what was wrong with the car and how to fix it. He is a professor. He could teach his students what mechanical engineering is about, he could teach them why the parts and pieces of a vehicle are fit together in the manner they are, but he couldn't make a car work!!!
That brings us to one conclusion, there are different reasons why people learn.
People learn for information
People learn for impartation; and
People learn for implementation.

The man who learns for information, knows what a thing is about. But information is not enough. It is not enough to know what something is all about if you want to make good profit from it. It goes a step further. Someone who learns for impartation, knows why a thing is, or functions the way it does. He can teach it. He can impart the knowledge of what and why. But that also is not enough. What and why are simply not enough.

Now, One must learn for implementation. That is, How. That is what the professor lacked. We must learn for What, Why, and How. That is when learning is complete. Knowing What and Why cannot benefit much, if not How.

That is the difference between Knowledge, Understanding and Wisdom. Knowledge is knowing what to do, understand is knowing why you want to do it while wisdom is knowing how to do it. Wisdom makes the process of learning complete. Complete learning, makes you wise. That is why an ancient text said "wisdom is the principal thing, so in all you do, get wisdom." He didn't say knowledge or understanding is the principal thing, he said wisdom. However, that is not to say knowledge and understanding are unimportant. They are important.

Today in Nigeria, people are so full of knowledge, without understanding and Wisdom. There're millions of folks out there with countless degrees and certifications and are yet stuck on the journey of life. They are so constipated with knowledge that they don't have an idea of how to make use of it.  Some even have understanding of what they know. They know "why", but they don't know how to implement. This is what has kept our economy stagnant. This is what has fueled the steady rise in unemployment. This is the dirt that has clogged up the minds of our leaders that they don't know how to implement policies and enforce laws.

The power of implementation, the power of wisdom, is a key factor in the progress of an individual's live, an organisation, or institution. It is the force that gets things done.

Dear friends, as individuals, as citizens, as devotees, as employers as employeees, as leaders, as followers, as men and women of vision and passion, it is expedient that we seek wisdom above all pursuits, that we dig for the element that will turn our lead to gold. It is paramount that we denounce this message of knowledge explosion, where people know a lot and know not how to implement. Therefore, dear friends it is vital that we embrace an era of wisdom explosion, where each person, knows how to implement what they know and achieve what they want. This way our lives will be better examples, the world would be a better place to live in—a place where wisdom rules.

INSPIRED TODAY: FULFILLMENT

Today we'd be talking about fulfillment. What is fulfillment? Fulfillment is the act of consummating a desire or promise. That is, it stems from a desire or a promise to someone or one's self. However, we would be focusing on personal fulfillment. If we break the word into two we would perhaps have a better understanding of it. Fulfillment comes from fulfill, and fulfill can be full-fill (To fill a thing to its fullness.) To have the full measure of a thing.

Haven established that, personal fulfillment is the state at which one's personal desires and promises are fully met; a state where you have reached the measure of the stature or status you desired for yourself. For a footballer, fulfillment could be; playing for his dream club; becoming the world's best player; earning a particular figure per week, or even; becoming the club's captain. Meanwhile, for a banker, fulfillment could mean; becoming a Managing Director, or an Executive Director. It could even be becoming a partner in that bank. It could be owning his/her own bank. So, fulfillment varies amongst individuals.
In essence there cannot be fulfillment without goals. When an individual lacks clear goals, he/she would want to emulate everyone. He wants to be the banker and the footballer and cannot get a head start at either. There must be a measure to Full-fill—to fill fully.

Fulfillment is the reality that makes us different. As a banker, I should not judge my progress based on that of my friend who is a footballer, playing for his dream club. We simply don't have the same measure to fill. I probably have more. A man filling up a bottle is different from another filling up a barrel. In essence our goals are different, meaning our paths of action and our conflicts are different.

Do You Seek A Sense Of Fulfillment?

If your answer is yes, well first of  all do you have a measure to fill? Do you have standards to meet? Do you have goals to achieve. You Will Never Ever Have A Sense Of Fulfillment If You Don't Have A Goal.

On Your Path To Fulfillment.

If you have brought yourself to the point where you desire fulfillment, ask yourself this questions:

1. What do I have to achieve to feel fulfilled? What measure/s do I have to fill? What are my goals?

2. What is my major conflict? What are the things opposing me on this path? What are those things I have to overcome? What are the challenges I have to face. To become a MD you need experience and training, probably numerous professional certifications. To have a Bachelor's Degree you have to sit for and pass series of tests and examinations. To become the best brand in your industry you have to be the best competitor, and so on. What are your conflicts? You cannot get there by doing nothing.

3. What are my strengths? What are the things I  have in my favor? If you have answered 2 above, then you sure have to be well equipped to overcome those conflicts. At this stage you will find out the things you already have and the things you need to get.

4. What are the stakes involved? What is at stake for me? If you don't achieve this goal of course you won't feel fulfilled. That alone is at stake. If you don't have a Bachelor's Degree, you  can't get some certain jobs. That's at stake.

By the time you have answered all these questions, you would have simultaneously drawn up a path of action for yourself. You already know what you need to do to fill up the measure you've set before yourself and then you can run with it. By run I mean Act. You can now act on these things and see your goals being fulfilled.

Long And Short Term?

Your goals of course can be long term goals or short term goals. Every long term goal is made up of numerous short term goals. And each short term goal have their own paths of action to achieving. So its up to you, to find out what your short term goals are within the scope of your long term goal. For example, to become a Managing Director, of a bank, you must have been a branch manager, or some sort of manager in the scope of the banking system. So being a branch manager is a short term goal in view of being a MD.

The Time To Act Is Now.

Well, if you just said in your mind, "I'll do this in my spare time" You won't do it. Because, anything you schedule for your spare time is considered less important. How important is fulfillment in 2016 to you? Do you want to repeat the failures of last year? The answer to that is not a  "No" it is " I'll act on it now" . You have 358 days to go. Act!

INSPIRED TODAY

It's been four months now since I last posted on this column. And I must say that I'm deeply sorry for that long break. However, I  learnt a lot of things during that period which I'm so eager to share with you. I got 3 jobs just at the close of August, which was quite sudden. One was a 9–5, and the other two were part time engagements I could handle from home. However, they still came with the series of  deadlines I had to meet. It was a much needed  challenge, because I used to consider myself a multi tasking guru. I realised otherwise these past few months.

The good thing is I've learned from it and I'm glad to share what I've learnt on this platform. This revelation is simple. I discovered that when you have multiple tasks to accomplish, especially when some of them are compulsory and uninteresting, the best way to go about them is to break them into segments and work on them at intervals. For example, if you have multiple books to read within a given time, what you need to do is divided those books into chapters. When you read one or two chapters of one book, switch to the next and read one or two chapters and then to the next book. That way you can go marathon and finish your task in time, instead of trying to finish one book before moving to the next. The disadvantage with that method is that staying on a particular task, especially an uninteresting task for longer periods reduces your efficiency in the long run. By the time you finish reading the first book, you are most likely too bored or tired to move on to the next. However, if you play that little trick on your mind, you get more things done. What's the trick? It's simple. It's telling your mind that you're starting a new task which increases the excitement a little bit. When the excitement dwindles, you move to the next –as though you're starting a new task.

However, it is important that you know yourself and understand what works for you. There's a popular saying, that yourself is your biggest enemy. That is, the only force standing in your way of achieving success is yourself. There's another saying, by the ancient Chinese: know thy enemy. Now if 'self ' stands a chance of being your enemy then you need to know yourself. When you know yourself well enough, self ceases to be an enemy. The menace it imposes on you becomes greatly reduced. In warfare, Enemy Intel is a vital part to the success of any campaign. And when you know everything about your enemy, it's strategies and Modus operandi, your success is 80% guaranteed. In essence, pay attention to yourself.

2016 is a new year, and we're all going into it with great hopes and aspirations. We see new year resolutions here and there because everyone wants to become a better person. But when the going gets tough, the people who will keep on standing with their decisions are those who made a resolution to be consistent, in and out of time. In consistency lies the key. For me I've accepted that I can't blog three times a week because of my other engagements, so I've decided to blog weekly on Thursday.

As we enter into a new year I can only pray that your dreams come true, and that your days be longer than 2016. I am Adeayo Adekunle and from me, it's happy new year!!!!

Happy birthday to my son, Oluwaferanmi Aluko. Testimony of his miraculous birth story.

Today am not only celebrating my son's first birthday but am also thanking God for the gift of life, his grace and mercy towards me during his birth was nothing short of a miracle... Testimony time!!!

Let me share with you my miraculous birthday story for the first time  and to testify of God's unconditional love in my life. If you are one of those who gets pregnant and deliver with ease, you should thank God for the privilege and gift.

Right from the day I discovered I was pregnant up to the day I birth him, it was one horrible Roller coaster.  Hospital became my second home and I was so emaciated that some people thought I was suffering from unknown disease... Lol.

My 75% discount gas cooker from Dealdey is here... Yeah!!!

I can't believe it!!!! Dealdey is Santa... I told you all last week about my experience at Dealdey clearance warehouse and how I bought a cooking gas at unbelievable price.  Though it took me a week to bring it in due to its size and weight, this morning my gas made it into my kitchen and am loving what I see. 

90x60 Stainless steel 4 gas burner + 1 electric burner with giant oven/drill (glass cover) for just N25k.... Now that's a give away ( original price is 70k) and you break your heart this was the last one.  But hey they still have other home appliances at an amazing price.  Check it out, it's bigger than my deep freezer.   

Ikorodu residents confirm a lion actually escaped from a zoo

Some days ago Ikorodu residents were thrown into panic over news of an escaped lion seen on the roof of a factory.  Due to the small nature of the wild beast a lot of people argued it was a dog.  Well,  been an indigen of Ikorodu by marriage I decided to contact my people to confirm the rumours.  It turns out that the news was true, there was really a lion on the loose

I paid my brother £75k to prevent him from coming out as Gay. John Fashanu

Former Wimbledon striker John Fashanu has confessed that he paid his brother Justin to keep his (Justin’s) homosexuality quiet.

The British-born Nigerian revealed in an interview published by the Mirror that he responded to his brother becoming the first British football star to come out as gay by paying him £75,000 to hide his sexuality. 

Guess who jacking Northwest tutu for Halloween, NickiMinaj

Guess who is fairly this #halloween #nickiminaj jacking #northwest and #penelope tutu😂😂 look at those twinees? #meekmill must be smiling 😍😛

Wow! Nigerian chef made a shrimps cocktail and it's yummy.

As shared by Chef Godwin on his FB page, shrimps cocktail. Never seen anything like it, creative and yummy. This is all I need for breakfast, See him and his creative team after the cut.

Ebuka and his new wife, Cynthia at the Lagos fashion week

Lovely couple. Ebuka na fine boy sha.

Toke Makinwa looking super stunning at the Lagos fashion week

Toke Makinwa looking super stunning at the Lagos fashion week last night. See rocked a red pencil dress with a gold shoes...I love love it

Wow! Omotoke @tokemakinwa nailed it 100% 👏👏👏 stunning. She looks every inch a celebrity. 👍🙌✌️😘😍 babe Pls can I borrow that body for Christmas? #moviestar see more photos after the cut.

Freda Francis post first photo of Iyanya on her page... Awwww.

Awwww 😊😍😜 @fredafrancis post first photo of her and her Bae #iyanya 👫 our own version of #kimye let's call them 😏#Frediyan 😂 name originated by #ElizabethAlukoBlog 🙌 

Wait a minute, this seem like early morning photo after dark. Ha Freda must be one happy woman...lol.

#Halloween: Two grown women dressed as Northwest and Penelope. Lol.

Lol. I think they nailed it. 

Unbelievable: Young man involved in freeway accident was thrown up and landed 20 feet up the billboard

A driver whose car rolled over several times on a Los Angeles freeway was thrown so far from his vehicle that his body landed on a road sign at least 20 feet above the ground.

California Highway Patrol Officer Chad Guin says the crash occurred on Interstate 5 north of downtown at about 7 a.m.

CHP officers got a ladder and climbed to the body, covered it and waited for a coroner's representative. 

Honourable wife bathed in hot pepper soup over Yaba market LCDA revenuecollection.

For Mrs. Oluwayemi Monsurat Owolabi, wife of Hon. Owolabi Alaoseniyan, a former member of Lagos State House of Representatives, representing Lagos Mainland Constituency, the sight of a steaming bowl of pepper soup, a local delicacy, will elicit fear in her for years to come.

It was with the hot substance that she was bathed in the evening of Monday, 12th of October, 2015 by social miscreants allegedly on the orders of a woman with whom she has been having a running battle.

KhloeKardashian back with James Harden while nursing her husband, Lamar.

#Khole is rumored to be walking her ass back to #jamesharden life while nursing her sick husband after calling off their divorce. She was recently spotted in a suit in Huston where Harden is club is playing. Thou she admitted in a recent interview that she and her Estrange husband #lamarodom are not romantically connected right now. Sources close to her says she and #jamesharden are trying to stay in each other's life. #confusedotcom #whatdoesKholewant #LamarvsJames 

Pics From Ubi Franklin And Lillian Esoro TM

Ubi Franklin and Lillian Esoro tied the knot in the traditional way, today 30th of october. Their white wedding will be holding tomorrow.

British Government To Depot 29,000 Nigerians

The House of Representatives is to investigate the case of the deportation of twenty nine thousand Nigerians by the British government.

The house mandated its committee on Diaspora and Foreign Affairs to investigate the matter and report back to the house within two weeks.

20 year Old Girl Sells 2 Weeks Old Baby For 20k In Calabar

Maria Ekanem sold her two week old baby to an Abuja-based woman for N20,000. According to a report by Vanguard, the 20-year-old school drop out from Odukpani Local Government Area of Cross River State, was arrested by the police along with her accomplices. 

Judge Sentences 8 Oil Thieves To 84 Years Imprisonment

Justice Okon Abang of a Federal High Court in Lagos on Friday convicted and sentenced seven men to a prison term of 84 years for dealing in 1,459 metric tonnes of Premium Motor Spirit without obtaining lawful authority.

Singer Saeon And Wizkid Are Now Cool With Each Other

The duo had publicly fallen out over promotion issues on their first song together, Boogie Down, but in this exclusive interview, she says things are now good between them. She even talked about doing another collabo with star boy.

Julius Agwu To Open A Christian Night Club

Julius Agwu is planning on opening a new night club in Lagos in the coming weeks. The club according to the Rivers state-born entertainer will be a ‘Christian Night Club’ called ‘Believers Lounge‘ where no smoking or drinking of alcohol will be allowed.
 In an exclusive chat, Julius confirmed to us saying, ‘Its God’s Calling. God spoke to me do it.

The Devastating State Of Ariaria International Market. See pics

More pics..

Russian Pornstar Sues Parents For Changing Door Locks, After Finding Out About Her Career

porn star is suing her parents after they allegedly disowned her and changed the locks on the family home when they found out about her career.

Vladislava Zatyagalova's parents believed she had left their home to become a choreographer.

Cross River State Government Suspend Morning Devotion In Schools

The Cross Rivers state government has ordered the suspension of early morning devotions held in primary and secondary schools across the state. A statement signed by the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Education in the state, Anne Odey, stated that the decision to suspend the devotion came from security concerns raised by the state Commissioner of Police, Henry Fadairo.

4 Fake Soldiers Paraded In Lagos

Four fake soldiers identified as John Izunwanne, 25, John Otu, 23, Richard Acha, 22, and Simon Anthony, 39, who were arrested at various times along Mile 2 road, Idi-Araba and Agege area in Lagos state, were paraded by the state Commissioner of Police, Fatai Owoseni at the force headquarters in Ikeja yesterday October 29th.

Kylie Jenner Spotted With Her Boy Crush 'Tyga'

 Kylie Jenner looks simple but very cute as she stepped out with her boy crush 'Tyga' in a casual outfit. The 18  looks better and more