Business Series 6: STARTING OUT AIN’T EASY

A friend of mine just made it big in business (as in big!) and we are rejoicing with him but I remember just two months ago he was telling me of his first few months in business, then He was dating the very lady he married and stepping out almost cost him the relationship (most Ladies love security (men too!)), but the fire within was too much and my friend took the dive! He survived and I can afford to tell the story.
I remember his summary of the whole scenario:
1. Hunger is the biggest motivation (i.e. secondary to desire, Hunger comes after you’ve gone with the desire!)
2. A tough path does not necessary mean a wrong path.
This article is for those with a desire, the worst thing would be to rouse desire in the wrong individual, it is wise to remind a motivated individual that “yes he can” and to persuade a pessimist is never a good approach. He/she will learn, we all did.
Have You Set Out or do you intend to?
Count the cost! Entrepreneurship is not easy and it is not hard either. It is a question of whether it is your thing, it takes a certain mindset:
“I can” attitude
Decisive personality
Forgiving (forgive thyself quickly after you’ve learnt the lesson)
Stick ability (like glue you are their till proven otherwise)
Flexibility (not implying lack of commitment)
Sociable: you can work with people
Durability: you can stick out the harmattan!
Tough: that it ain’t working doesn’t mean you’re stupid
Faith: You believe in things!
Well, having all these qualities does not really imply you can be up to it, the thing I have learnt is that besides your competence, your patience and emotional maturity is one of the most determining character for success.

TALK THE TALK
If faith is inside you, it must come out on your lips except if it a mere dream (the one you dream at night), but if it is your (note the personification) dream (the day type) then start talking the talk. A lot of folks have quit talking because they are scared of people stealing their ideas. What they don’t know is that ideas are a dime a dozen, what is lacking is people who believe in them and have the ability to bring them to pass. But can your idea be stolen? Not really, it can be shared though! You get my point.
If you keep talking, at a time you’ll keep quiet without being told to, that is when the results starts appearing or when you discover the work it will take! At such times you’ll come to learn that the real reason why we speak is to release creative forces in the atmosphere. Forces that forges convictions even in us, yes in you; the speaker. You are the ultimate beneficiary. At such a time your speaking literally increases but the company diminishes.
WHEN THE FROST BITES
There are no free trade zones in the world! They may remove the other charges but you’ll still pay money and handle the transportation issues. In enterprise development the frost has a way of coming early and uninvited, but surviving the frost is the source of a Polar bear’s strength.
Do you know that Nokia was a paper manufacturer, the frost drove them to realize that communication is not limited to paper, that airwaves is a lot better.
The frost drove America to become a world giant.
Rules of the thumb: Hunger will motivate you only if you have a burning desire and are not ready to quit. Some people ensure they don’t quit by deleting all other options possible (burn the boats!)!
When you sack your boss, don’t take her/him back. Learning inexpensively (when you can) is a lot wiser and once you are out there judge God Faithful.
We will continue.
Okwonna Nnamdi Nelson

JOS CRISIS: A “CROSS” VIEW

Last week a cousin of mine looked me in the eyes and asked me if there was a meter for pain, if there is an apparatus to measure the level of pain he was going through. He was quite serious so I did my best to hide the tears that were coming; at that level words become so inefficient.
One doesn’t need to be a mother, a loved one or a friend to feel the loss. One doesn’t need to see the corpses or hear the grimy details to appreciate the level of pain that is currently in the hearts of many, and one wouldn’t need a meter to read it. Like my cousin someone in Jos right now, an affected individual or a concerned citizen is feeling the pain of Sunday morning incidence right now. As I write this my heart is bleeding and I lack words to fully express the thoughts except that evil has triumphed here.
I dare say that the figures are not important, as someone aptly said; “kill one individual and I will call it murder, kill a million and I will call that statistics”. None the less an individual’s death is enough to warrant this article.
Where is the explanation for this madness? When will it stop? What does God say in the face of this tragedy? Where is Jesus in this crisis?
Where is Christ in the face of this wanton destruction?
Answer: On the cross, weeping. His heart bled not only for those that were martyred last Sunday morning but more so for those who committed the detestable act. He shed His precious blood for them all and lest we should forget He made a profound statement: “Father forgive them for they do not know what they do!”
But then what are they doing?
They flared the church and killed individuals known to be Christians, Christ in His words acknowledged that yes they have done a very evil act (he prayed for their forgiveness) but in reality they do not know what they are doing. They did theirs out of religious zeal; Christ too was crucified out of religious zeal. Man has been a religious zealot for ages, trying to please God! Someone might suggest that the acts were politically motivated but then the individuals that executed the acts weren’t.
God cannot be pleased by the efforts of sinful man; I repeat, a Holy Righteous God cannot be pleased or appeased by the mere efforts of sinful man, efforts conceived by a heart God himself described as “desperately wicked”. Man’s problem is not that he is unethical it is that his very heart is lost in sin. God’s Holiness unlike our “righteousness” is not due to the absence of sin but due to the presence of something. Christ on that Cross has paid a price man for centuries have tried to negotiate and man’s righteousness before God can only be inputted.
At the heart of every religious view is man’s desire to please God and Man is so aware of his sinful state. The individuals that murdered these citizens in Jos cannot be celebrated as saints even by an atheist. Christ came and made a statement, a very simple one; “Man He said, Man, your sins are forgiven. I am the lamb for the sacrifice, the only qualified sacrificed. Just believe in me”. Many a men have heard that statement and had said “No sir, I want to do something”.
It is only a heart that has accepted His Love that can love and this is another ultimate test for Christians for Christ also said “Love your enemies, pray for those who spitefully use you”.
So I pray for the individuals that murdered potentialities on Sunday morning, individuals that have “pleased” God yesterday. I pray for the family members and individuals that encouraged them on this act. I pray for their children, as they recount their ordeal to their sponsors, I pray for them. I pray for them at those nights when the seed of God inside them will remind them that those individuals were also made by the same God they worship, I pray for them on the day they will lose loved ones and remember the pain they have caused others, I pray that as they discover that we mourn at the loss of loved ones because our spirit realize the eternality of that event, I pray that God will indeed forgive them for truly they do not know what they are doing.
It is not time for hate. If a child should mistakenly place a hot coal in my eye in a domestic accident I would not like it, I would be very sad at it, I would have done my best to prevent it if I could, but I won’t hate him for that incident even if my loss were for life.
In Christ we find meaning to every expression; everything that is happening in the world today is a fulfillment of His Word, from Jos to Haiti. The details are all there in red ink and that brings a certain assurance that a knowing God loved me, sent His son to die for my sins, gave me His Word to explain and instruct me on my pilgrimage on this earth and reminds me that it is His will that none should perish especially the murdering hoard at Jos. He reminds me to tell them that more than half the written testament was written by a man who was known to be the terror of the Christian faith and I pray they meet the Lord. Hear Mr. Paul, ex-religious zealot, fanatic and self acclaimed righteous man, well trained on the facts of the law, a lawyer by training, award winning persecutor:
“even though we can list what many might think are impressive credentials. You know my pedigree: a legitimate birth, circumcised on the eighth day; an Israelite from the elite tribe of Benjamin; a strict and devout adherent to God's law; a fiery defender of the purity of my religion, even to the point of persecuting Christians; a meticulous observer of everything set down in God's law Book. The very credentials these people are waving around as something special, I'm tearing up and throwing out with the trash--along with everything else I used to take credit for; and why? Because of Christ. Yes, all the things I once thought were so important are gone from my life. Compared to the high privilege of knowing Christ Jesus as my Master, firsthand, everything I once thought I had going for me is insignificant--dog dung. I've dumped it all in the trash so that I could embrace Christ and be embraced by him. I didn't want some petty, inferior brand of righteousness that comes from keeping a list of rules when I could get the robust kind that comes from trusting Christ--God's righteousness.
I gave up all that inferior stuff so I could know Christ personally, experience his resurrection power, be a partner in his suffering, and go all the way with him to death itself. “
Mr. Paul of Tarsus in his letter to the children of God at Philippi, the 3rd chapter

From this view I am apt to allow Christ to bring His comfort to my bleeding heart and not make room for bitterness for the Love of Christ compels me.
Okwonna Nelson

BUSINESS SERIES 5: MONEY IS NOT ENOUGH

Last time we spoke on the need for one to develop competence, to look within and to harness the raw material; to teach our selves the necessary attributes required to achieve the desired end.

Most times an idea of today is not necessary for today but rather to send you to today’s learning arena.

The greatest burden I’ve always believed is that of potential, when you are aware of the possibilities within you but caged by the immediate it can be quite frustrating; every great achiever encountered this dilemma. We stressed that should you be in such a case the best step is to develop more competence or to give birth to the idea in a manger. Start small and keep listening to the music within.

Money will never satisfy you, for every covenant child, every child of destiny, material abundance is not designed to satisfy your inner longings and it can’t.

When one has a great desire to start a particular creative venture on the face of the globe, at first one would need to make sacrifices to attend to that venture (it is not usually profitable at the early stage). Just to create time for that idea is a major risk considering the opportunity cost (friends are moving on e.t.c.), then the individual has to invest the scarce means (means he didn’t have).

To take the above steps an individual who is on the path of destiny and is interacting with the seed of God in Him must have come across certain things which I will highlight below:

1.       Money for money sake is not enough motivation, in fact when one is involved in a business just for money sake he or she had left the plane of the creative, the selfish tendencies of man I’ve come to learn has a way of stealing divine inspiration which is our greatest asset.

2.       The seed in you has an inbuilt corrective mechanism; anytime you are either moving out of alignment with that seed or moving in unbelief (the cares of this world) there is a chastisement that should point you to an inward communion with God. I have learnt from experience that just after every “corrective affliction” is a new wave of revelation and progress. So move in the direction of the sun (heat/food). The symptoms are that you’ll lose your peace and the usual amicable atmosphere then becomes hostile all of a sudden, it is easy to mistake this for an enemy’s challenge.

3.       Independence is the name of the game: spiritual, emotional, physical and psychological independence are an all important criteria to bring about the birth of destiny and this doesn’t come cheap. You might think you are really independent until the internal corrective mechanism gets into motion, our value system in Africa places a lot of emphasis on support groups (families, friends and connections), that is why a lot of businesses, marriages and other ventures rises and falls with the mood of the “life support partner”. Teachers are mentors are necessary but learn to do your own digging. A nanny is not a life affair, we all need nannies at one point but then having more understanding than one’s teachers come from private meditation.

4.       Another level of dependence is the “deceitfulness of riches and the cares of this world”: when my mood, plans and gait is influenced by the amount of money in my bank account I am lost in unbelief and in the arena of faith unbelief is a crime. I have learnt that the most important thing is the Word spoken to me and my interaction with that Word, The Word makes everything.

5.       When one has learnt to be inward (enjoy your own Spirit inspired thoughts), to master his/her emotions and to seek direction when the corrective motions sets in, the other thing is the power in making those internal convictions and beliefs external utterances.

 Many times we are quick to speak, to confess what we don’t really believe. Inasmuch as one needs to be vocal, it is best to develop roots within before undertaken such venture as you might fail to defend all the opposition that comes with speaking! Talking of opposition, you don’t need to defend your view (though you might want to at first), just ask God to confirm them.

There is great power in the spoken Word; words are the only things that have equal value in both the spirit and the physical realm. When God worked He spoke and Adam’s first work was naming every creature. We are in partnership with a speaking Creator.

In conclusion, I would say that for many for whom the seed of destiny has been crying within. The incorruptible seed that secured salvation, our greatest task is to feed that seed, to develop competence; to learn the art of independence and absolute trust on God as the source, to recognize that there is a creative genius within us that has created all of the inventions we see today. To recognize that the cries of this nation Nigeria is only parallel to those of the seed within you crying for expression, potentialities that can die on the altar of our own selfish plans. We must then therefore pay careful heed to the Words spoken to us, to pay the price of consecration that the seed of God demands and to speak Spirit inspired and energized words.

By these I believe we will qualify to be a receptacle and a depository for more of God’s divine and accurate wisdom (epignosis); manifesting Zoe (the God kind of Life).

The Supremacy of Love in a Hating World

If Love is the greatest ethic then freedom is a necessary component because love cannot be coerced. That is why coerced ethics practiced in most religion is not able to produce love in the adherents but rather to foster hatred, hatred because of the displeasure at the inability of the object to see issues at the same plane as the subject. Christ however compels us to love even our enemies because it is only in the absence of hate that love can thrive and relationship with God thrives only in a love atmosphere because God is love personified.

A lot of time one has wondered at how could a good and loving God exist in the face of much evil? A good answer I’ve found is that for one to ask that question, there must have been an assumption that good exists (as evil can only exist in the presence of the good), but for good and evil to exist there must of necessity be a moral law (that says what is good and what is bad), and for this moral law to exist there must be a moral law giver (God), so the question kind of disappears!
A better question is what does God say about the evil around us? (We will answer this question later)

Ok, the responsibility of a Christian is to love. But is love acceptance?
Love is not the acceptance of people with all their prerogatives; there is a difference between accepting people and accepting their worldview. Love demands that I acknowledge and respect your God given right to choose your path, it in no way demands that I celebrate it. The first man (Adam) loved his wife so much that he decided to die with her; the second man (Jesus) loved us so much that he died for us! He didn’t like our state but he understood it.

It is then importance for us to understand when Jesus said “For God so loved the world (sinful world) that He gave His only begotten Son, that he who believes in Him may not die but have everlasting Life” the ultimate Love is redemptive, it gives us the chance and the will to choose Life.
When we kill or attempt to kill people for God, we act out of ignorance of the knowledge of Love, that is why religion (man’s zeal for God) can never bring out the life of God because man is incapable of such. It is in accepting His Love that we obtain the power to live the life.

Where is God in the face of human suffering?
Answer; On the cross, Christ has taken on the sufferings of sinful man so that should you and I can come into a relationship with him, acknowledge our weakness and come into a fellowship with that finished work, we would find meaning and rest for our souls.

Man is not at peace with his neighbor because he is not at peace with himself; he is not at peace with himself because he is not at peace with his God.
In the words of Mahatma Gandhi, “the essence of the Cross is without parallel”.
More thoughts at www.nelsontalks.blogspot.com

UMARU SHEHU MUSA YAR’ADUA: THE MAKING OF A FAILED STATE

UMARU SHEHU MUSA YAR’ADUA: THE MAKING OF A FAILED STATE
As we commiserate with our president at his moment of ill health, I wish to use this opportunity to join voice, hands and legs with numerous Nigerians who are dissatisfied with the imbroglio Nigeria has been subjected to in the eyes of the whole world.
A government that prides itself by the mantra of the “rule of law” should and must at this crucial moment of our National history live up to its name, promises and chants.
I know that my president will come back to govern this nation again but I also know that we cannot afford to have a vacuum at the highest seat of governance, the resent listing of Nigeria as a terrorist Nation (by implication) should bring the attention of any right thinking individual to a crucial observation; our handshake with folly and ineptitude has certainly passed the elbow. We cannot and shall not allow a cabal of selfish Nigerians to thwart the hopes, dreams and destinies of the 140 million majority, we refuse to agree that this circumstances is the making of God, though it would serve His purpose but then we; you and I are born for a time like this and evil will only thrive because we allow it. What am I saying? My point is the very thing my dear president has been chanting for a while; the rule of law, let him handover to the vice president in an acting capacity until his health status is confirmed.
It is on this note that I urge every Nigerian to join us on Tuesday, the 12th of January as we undertake a peace walk from the Millennium park Maitama Abuja to the State House to say no to the foolhardiness we have been forced to explain away for the last 5 weeks of our president’s absence.
I also wish to add at this junction that all Nigerians should start thinking of creative ways to thwart the schemes of the vile men and women of this nation; a minority that has undertaken to subjugate the better masses, specifically as it relates to 2011 election. Thank God for facebook and other social websites, let us buy cameras (long range view would be wiser!) and prepare to capture the show of shame our country men are definitely preparing to hoist on us once again.
Let it be that evil triumphed despite our efforts rather than we failed to even try, for the sake of the unborn generation, for the sake of the potential hazards of war, for the sake of the embarrassment at the embassy, for the sakes of the lives lost at our expressways let us arise and for once live up to the meaning of our national anthem that “the labours of our heros past shall never be in vain” before we wake up one morning to the gluttonous voice of one military man reciting “good morning fellow Nigerians”.



The Story
The Tales of of our hearts
yet untold, if ever
tales of hope and love.
Of love turn to hate of hope turn to sighs.
Our hearts tale, a nation's tale

young as kids, papa told us tales
tales of time past.
Old tales of fame, love and life.
Of men before, men with stories to tell.
Ancients though. Yet they had some tale.

Sooner young hands would touch mine, calloused though.
Soft voices, eager and lively would say:
papa tell us some tales, tales of love and hope.
Of deeds done before, of men.

Though gentle of heart,
a heart most endeared with passion.
A passion of old,
a passion for my nation.
I would mutter "no stories my children, see, your momma calls"

alas this might be a nation without tales.
Though it be seemingly so
I would forever cry "yes my children, thus the story began"
how this might be you ask?
I am the story I answer.

Copyright@Okwonnanelson2003.
Thanks .

Business Series 4

Competence Development

“To everyone was given a certain measure of talent”
In the parable of the talents, though the distribution was not equal, nobody got nothing and interestingly the distribution was according to their abilities.
So if I should desire more talents then I should develop more abilities like capability, marketability, trustability, stickability, responsibility, availability, listening capability, manageability, adaptability, and on and on and on. So it is never a surprise when you see work/money migrating to those with the ability for its maintenance, implicit is the statement that everything migrates to the person who has the most ability for its maintenance, Everything! This is called “The law of Use”
“To him that has, more will be given. To him that has not, what he has will be taken from him”
The contradiction in the above statement is that someone who doesn’t have would lose what he has! That tells me that everyone has something; it is just that some folks don’t count theirs as anything.
Success is not making billions; it is doing what you are supposed to do. And every one of us is fully equipped for the assignment, so don’t judge your progress with how much you’re making yet but rather on how good you’ve multiplied the abilities and talents you have. How have you developed that crude idea of yours? From how many angles have you looked at it? Africans someone said are innocent of deep thinking, your greatest competence development is in the place of thinking, (thinking borne out of reading), so meditate on issues. Rather than cry for lack of capital, capitalize on your idea. Your idea is the capital; what you don’t know is how to get the money to fund it.
What do you do then?
Learn, Learn, Learn; Money is an essential ingredient for the success of any venture no doubt so you’ve got to learn how to attract it and use it. If you can’t find a way to finance your venture maybe you should start considering loan or equity. Believe me, if money is the reason you can do nothing then you are not ready. Any good idea can be given birth to in a manger! If you believe in it then sow it like the mustard seed, this things take time to happen.
Some few days ago, I decided to postpone the implementation of some ideas I have but to rather learn more and spend some time helping others on a similar path to achieve their dreams while learning from them. I call this sowing, and you can’t sow without reaping.
The great truth in the parable of the sower is that the farmer consciously put seed into the ground.
Create time for learning and reading.
One who cannot read or learn in the area of their dream has taken the window.
There is a lot of space out there, so don’t rush out until you are ready and independent enough for the journey and emotionally/financially sound enough to survive the fall if it comes.
Every entrepreneur knows that falls are part of the game.
I have always wondered how the founder of Fedex could stick in school while he wrote his idea for the firm (his MBA dissertation), the paper was graded a “C”. On the other hand Bill Gates had to leave school to make Microsoft a success. A closer look showed that Bill Gates left when the idea was already succeeding and he didn’t need the Harvard education to make it a success, the adrenaline rush a business idea generates could if not channeled to the right source be devastating.
Do you have a burning idea? Good, then check your competency level,
Can I do this now?
What would I need?
Can I survive a fall?
Have I done market research?
Why am I doing this?
Is it just for cash or it is something I love doing?
Do I need further training?
What would be the effect on family and loved ones?
Capital?
I will always advice for equity if family and friends cannot make up the funds you require, loan is a very good instrument if you know how to handle it.
A note for Kings and Priests
A Born again Christian is a king and a priest at the same time, in as much as righteous living and continuous study of the word are prerequisites for a Kingship. Capacity development has hindered a lot of us from making significant development in the annals of History.
Our Kingship is a result of our Priesthood but then there are mannerisms of a King which are quite different from those of a Priest. It takes a King to be an administrator like Joseph, a Shepherd, warrior and King like David. It takes the mannerism of Kingship for Daniel to survive Babylon. As a Christian in this present world, One must maintain a burning alter (Priesthood) for therein lies the channel for heavenly communication (Spiritual insight is our greatest asset) and develop the Speech and competence of a King.
Solomon in proverbs stated these characters. In Proverbs 31 vs 10 to end we find a queen. A good study of the whole book will give one profound insight.

To be continued
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Read up previous editions in December ARCHIVE.

Looking Back at History

I look back at history

What do I see?

the time of joy

and a time the heart grew sad

I saw a time when circumstances brought tears

And a time when they brought laughter

I saw a time when tomorrow went dim for despair

And a time when the corner was way out of sight

a time when standing in the valley

One wept for the peak

And a time when at the peak one wondered

“There is nothing here”

I saw a time when blinded by the immediate

One plunged the fall

The time when the best of one was not enough

Then the time when lack rose at A51

And a time of abundance at F41

I saw a time when heart failed for want of faith

And a time when joy filled a heart

Alas , the times when the best of times

 where the worst of times

when meaning looked meaningless

and a time when in brokenness

meaning was found

a time when giving ones best brought cheers

and a time when it got one stoned

the times one gave and the times one took

then the day for love

times when the love of God

was all one knew

a time when chains had to fall

and men became

then a time to love

and love one did

and did!

Should one caption the sight

It would be that in history

I saw people;

Mentors, teachers, and colleagues

Family, friends and foes

In history I saw myself

And the Hand of God

Should I say my best

It would be that He factored it all

The best of times and the worst of times

He factored it all

So at twice a dozen and one

I could face boldly

Face uncertain tomorrow

Because of a certain He

If I should fall

He knew of it

I pray I won’t

For the much I can’t understand

He factored them all

I look back

I see God.

And in Front

The Almighty Himself.

At a certain age

One better be sure.

For destiny calls

And I had bid the call.

Socrates was wrong

One needn’t tell the whole story
And I wouldn’t try
What rocks discuss at lunch
Socrates called nonsense
A man’s musings on paper
We call a ballad
It was a day for both
I actually heard them
The rocks I mean
There were four of them
What is he doing on top of big head?
The other asked,
The answers were plenty!
Socrates was probably right.
In truth this ballad had my attention
Didn’t plan to though
Certainly not the typing
A noisy evening it was
noisy for meaningful thought
Lovely setting though
But not for a lone figure
It was three of us that came
But three was a crowd
The rocks didn’t appear to mind me
So I asked for a seat
Until then at least!
Best place for thoughts; M park
Silence spoke volume
Swelling possibilities
one thought changes everything
Everything but the rocks
A hard tale to tale
A heart’s tale
Felt with few words
But then I learnt the ton
The tale of the rocks
They would be always there
Best to write once the lesson is learnt
So I penned the tale
The tale of the rocks
Some things never change
My day’s lesson
“Let’s go now”; said my friends
I gasped at their sound
No, not my friends. the rocks
It came in whispers,
Some keywords struck;
“H-complex” ,“cytokines” “co-modulators”
He chose the wrong object, Socrates I mean
No, not amongst rocks
Some things never change
Some people do
The rocks tale.
Socrates wasn’t right

STARS

“Dr Watson, Dr Watson
What do the stars mean to you?
What do the stars mean to you tonight?”
A finger points up
Two eyes followed, four gazed
It was a beautiful site
Out in the woods,
the middle of the night
The stars told their tale; grandeur
Detective Holmes wanted answers
He should get one
A grand one perhaps
It was a chill night, the toads croaked in the distance
The owl maintained her solitary watch
The chirps a symphony of sorts
The question again; the stars tonight!
The stars looked lovely
“Oh many things
Many things, detective Holmes
astronomically there are millions of stars
Astrologically I think Saturn is within Leo
Meteorologically I think Tomorrow is going to be a good day
Horologically I think it’s quarter past two.
And theologically I think God is big, this is His world and I am small.”

But then, Holmes what do the stars mean to you tonight?”
“Oh silly, silly Watson,
it does mean that while we were sleeping
Someone came and stole our tent.”
Sherlock Holmes, Doctor Watson
Silent stars
Different thoughts
Different events
Real events
It is a great day,
A new era, new aura
A New phase, new season
A new you. A new me
Nigeria; same nation
old era, old aura
Old phase, old season
Same nation
Sherlock Holmes, Dr Watson
Same star, Same Nation
Same you, same me
What do the stars mean to you tonight?



(hope you’ve registered for voting 2011, your votes counts! Lets see the stars differently)

End of ballad