Chapter 5
RIGHT APPROACH
By
The Man Who Saw God Face To Face
Raphael Okechukwu Nweze
RIGHT ATTITUDE
Attitude means the way you feel, think or behave concerning the issue and challenges of life. A right attitude is the one, which enhances success. An attitude that works against success is regarded as bad attitude. All the right attitudes sum up into positive behaviour and approach, while the bad attitudes lead to bad behaviour and approach.
A person may have all means and opportunity at his disposal; yet fail in life because of his wrong attitudes. In other words, many fail in life, not because they cannot achieve success but because of the wrong attitude which they exhibit.
SELF-CONFIDENCE
Nothing kills a young man like inferiority complex. Many are not able to face the challenges of life or speak in the public, because they do not have self-confidence. They do not have faith in themselves. They believe that they cannot do it. They fail to understand that all the necessary potentials for success are already in them. They think that others are superior, better qualified than themselves. Therefore, they feel shy and intimidated.
An employer will consider again the applicant who has self-confidence, but he would immediately disqualify the person, who is incipient, afraid of making an attempt, who believes himself that he cannot succeed.
The world encompasses both the spiritual and physical. It is spiritual that proceeds and determines the physical. The spiritual is the foundation of the physical. It is the nature of the spirit to act according to the thoughts projected to it. If you believe that you can do something, nature will uphold you to do it. If you think that you cannot do it, nature withdraws the enabling forces and opportunities so that you will not be able to do it. The forces of nature are at the command of every person who is ready and confident to utilize them. The world makes way for he person who believes that he can. Others admire him. He is already a winner, who is set out to win.
The call of Moses was a clear evidence of self-confident. Moses thought and believed that he could not lead the Israelites out of Egypt. He gave one reason after another. At a time, he told God, plainly, to “…Send someone else to do it,” Exodus 3 and 4. Eventually, it turned out that Moses was able to lead the Israelites out of Egypt. In addition, “…no one has ever shown the mighty power or performed the awesome deeds that Moses did in the sight of all Israel,” Deuteronomy 34: 10-12.
Many individuals will refuse to serve or appear in the public gathering. This is because they think that the public will engulf them. They believe that they cannot do it. They are afraid of people, afraid of making mistakes, afraid of criticisms, afraid of first attempt, afraid of failure, afraid of people’s eyes. Simply put, they lack self-confident.
A person who lacks self-trust always thinks that others are superior to himself. Yet all were created alike, and equipped alike, as the same image and likeness of God. A demonstrative example is found between Angel Gabriel and Apostle John: ”I John, am the one who heard and saw these things (recopied in the book of revelation). And when I had heard and seen them, I fell down and worshipped at the feet of the angel who had been showing them to me. But he said to me, “Do not do it! I am a fellow servant with you and with your brothers the prophets and of all who keep the words of this book. Worship God,” Revelation.22: 8-9. John valued himself less. Angel Gabriel valued him more. In summary, it is good to think positively and not negatively, if success must be achieved in your life.
JOYFUL VOLITION
Nobody who delights in his work is easily downcast. He is moved forward by spiritual momentum called enthusiasm. His work is a delight to him. Often, he would like to continue when others are fed up.
Work becomes drudgery to the person who wants to escape from it, who does not give his full attention to it, who does not call his work a delight. This type of person sits down to watch the hands of the clock move so slowly. His feeling is discomfort, and insignificant irritations annoy him. The man who works with joyful volition is, more or less, mindless of his environment and time. Joy and satisfactions are his. Before he knows it, another workday has come to an end.
DESIRE
Desire is the key that opens the way for the omnipotence of God to manifest. It automatically links with the universal force and ensures the actualization of goals. The universe is very sensitive and intelligent, and rightly makes every wish and desire fulfilled. The fulfillment may be immediate or remote. Yet it is sure to manifest.
Desire is like a plug, which connect an electrical appliance to the supply channels of electrical energy. And just as every wire can only take the power it can bear, so our desires are made to manifest according to their nature and intensity. Eventually, people end up being what they desire to become.
It has being proven beyond all reasonable doubt, that majority of mankind do not desire enough to become successful, geniuses, pacesetters or distinguished. They are satisfied with everyday life and routine. Even when there is a desire for such prominence, it may not be earnest. It is the very few who earnestly desire to become great and successful, and prove their might by their diligence that eventually become what they desire to be in life.
Jesus emphasized the importance of the desire, when he said “Ask and it will be given to you, seek and you will find, knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.” (Matt.7: 7-8).
The great and successful ones did not become so by chance. First, they desired earnestly to become, and second, they confirmed it by their persistent effort and diligence. If you do not desire something, the likelihood is that you will not work for it. And there cannot be a supply when there is no demand.
Strong desires draw us
to their actualizations.
Mere wishes
make us mere feathers
which are blown about
by tides, winds and changes.
All because the pull is not
resolute and strong.
Yet, there is a way
where there is a will.
An earnest soul
persists to succeed
But a mere wish
is easily knocked off
its course.
AIM IT AT SKY
“Aim at the sky, so that you can shoot a bird.”
I mean, desire, plan and work for the best. A would-be successful person will aim high. The sky can become his start point, and not his limit.
He has a noble aim,
who desires
and wills
in every situation
to fly
It is an evident truth that our desire and purpose draw us to their fulfillments. Nature responds to everyone according to his desires, plans and efforts. Those who do not strive for improvements stay where they are, no matter the conditions.
This explains why the environments in our towns are unkempt and repulsive; yet, people live there, day in day out. On the other hand, those who strive for improvement, for the greater and noble things of life, eventually succeed in getting them.
Beware of your thoughts and actions;
of your habits and desires
Likewise, of your plans and efforts
and of your words and expectations
for each is prayer,
whose manifestation is coming,
and accordingly sure.
Climb high,
higher and higher
to a point sublime
Think better,
more and more
for improvements relevant
I mean,
desire and strive
to evolve and grow
From where you are
to heights
greater and nobler.
ACT AS IF ALREADY SUCCESSFUL
If you want to become prominent, do not wait until you become great and successful, before you start acting. Is a group about to choose a president? - they will choose a person who is already exhibiting the qualities of a president. Is the army about to appoint a commander? - They will appoint the soldier who is already commanding very well. Is an entertainment group about to approve an actor? - They will take the person who acts very well.
It is a fact that practice makes perfect. Also, it is a fact that your practice recommends you or disqualifies you. A man eventually becomes what he usually thinks of himself.
Live your model
Think like him.
And do everything
As he would
So that your sincerity
Recommends you.
And upholds you
Live your model
Always.
FAILURE IS A STEP TO SUCCESS
Many are discouraged in life because of failure. They are afraid of failure, afraid of first attempt, afraid of being laughed at. Therefore, they refrain from attempting and remain the ordinaries.
Have you ever thought over the attitude and action of a child who is learning to walk? He keeps on getting up and falling down. Even, he makes it a delight by laughing at his failure, and the world around him laughs with him. The child does not stop at that. He persists until he has gained mastery: able to stand up and walk about. This is a lesson that nature teaches us all about success in life.
Initial failures are steps to success. They approve who among the aspirants is likely to succeed or not. Failures do not discourage those who want to succeed. Successful people do not shy away or keep on regretting their failures. They do not mind the scorn of people around them. Like the child who is persistent to stand up, he keeps on trying.
But those who do not insist on succeeding shy away. They are afraid of first attempt, afraid of failing. Should they fail, they thereby convince themselves that they cannot succeed and therefore stop attempting. It is not necessarily your opportunities that see you through, more than your attitude, approach and persistence.
So many of the successful individuals failed in the past but they learnt lessons from their failures. This is because experience is the best teacher. It is from experience that success and mastery are gained. On advisory note, it is not recommendable to laugh at somebody for his failure, or to call him a failure because of that. The downfall of a man is not the end of his life. Generally, failure is taken to be a lone orphan, who does not have even mates, whereas success has many friends. Yet, the one is as important as the other - only intentional failure is blameworthy.
Failure
Failure
The base line of Success
Success
Success
The crown of failure
None ever succeeds
that fears failure
and retreats because of it.
You are not blamed
for attempting and failing.
But, for not attempting and
persisting.
WHEN MISTAKE IS MADE
It is the attitude of some to fuss, fret, complain and rebuke whenever mistake is made. This attitude is not the best, in as much as nobody is above mistake. More so, mistake always occur.
Remark this point - sometimes, a mistake provides a better alternative, an improvement which otherwise is not possible. Develop a positive attitude towards mistake, by receiving it with a thoughtful look on how best it would be utilized or corrected. A thousand bickering do not correct a mistake.
Complains, murmurings, curses and rebukes, whenever mistake is made, kill the spirit of cooperation. It makes your colleagues and subordinates to keep away from you, without you knowing it. It causes them to hide costly mistakes so that you do not find out. This in turn, increases the problems from the mistake, which could have been corrected, prevented or improved. As mistakes are unavoidable in life situation, they should not be allowed to discourage one. Mistake enhances expertise, if one is shrewd.