Monthly Archives: June 2006

Adeolu Akinyemi
June 20, 2006

World Cup!


The world cup is probably the most attention grabbing event in the world today. It happens once in 4 years but is unrivaled by the olympics, despite the fact that more sporting events are featured in it. To what event can we compare the World Cup? The swearing in of a new pope does not carry so much world interest, neither does the election of any of the worlds presidents, nor can you compare any one country’s independence day celebration with the global attention this one sport commands. Football!

Does it amaze you like it does me? That 25 grown up men (including the referees and their assistants-linesmen) spend a good part of 90 minuites running around chasing a leather ball? Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy the game, in fact, my first audible word as a growing child was “ball” – Evidenced by my carefully filled out baby book :) Continue reading →

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Adeolu Akinyemi
June 17, 2006

The $1 Million Test


If you won $1 million today, what would you do? Will you resign from your present job?

Research says that over 80% of people in the US will resign from their present jobs, do you have an idea what the statistics of Nigeria will look like? The interesting thing is, if you will resign from your present job, then you are in real trouble.

It means you have gotten the order wrong! You are waiting to make all the money you need, to begin to do the things that you love. It sounds like a good thing to do, after all, ABBA sang, ” All the things I could do, if I had a little money”. So you are waiting to have more money, then you will live the life of your dreams. It reminds me of the story of a fisher man. This fisher man was visited by an consultant from town, and they decided to go fishing together. The fisher man worked for 4 hours, caught a lot of fish, and retired for the day. The consultant was shocked, and the following conversation ensued.

Consultant: Do you know that I can show you a way to make a lot more money by doing this same business?

Fisherman: Aha…really, but what will be the need of that?

Consultant: See, if you spend 4 extra hours, making 8hrs fishing, you’ll catch double this number of fishes, you’ll be able to feed your family, sell the rest, make more money, re-invest it into your business, continue again tomorrow and before long, you’ll have enough money to buy a ship!

Fisherman: What will I do with a Ship?

Consultant: You’ll be able to go to sea, catch a lot more fish, supply the cities, and make a lot more money.

Fisherman: Then what?…Smiling happilly

Consultant: Then when you have made a lot of money, you’ll retire back to your village, work for few hours and spend the evenning chilling with your friends.

Fisherman: But that’s exactly what I do now! Why do I have to waste my time going that long route?

AHa…I hope you got that. Happiness is not the result of working tirelessly to make ends meet, then going ahead to do the things you love. Happiness is about finding the things that you truely enjoy, and following it with a passion. Successful people will tell you that they don’t work, they simply have found ways of being paid for what they love. In the words of Dale Carnegie, success is about finding what you love, and getting someone to pay you for doing it.
So take the $1million test, and be honest with yourself, what will change about your lifestyle and career? Whatever will change, needs to be changed! Start working towards it!

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Adeolu Akinyemi
June 14, 2006

180 Degrees Training Opportunities


180 Degrees

Following the May 1 announcement of training opportunities, please see modules below:

  1. Blogging:
    It has become a buzzword, and many people claim that they’re making lots of money through it! Could it be true? Well, it is true — but there are some things they have not told you: setting up a blog is like discovering the life you should have been living! A blog combines the power of online presence — that websites bring — with the ease of filling in a diary without the need for writing techie codes! And it also helps secure your real estate online, standing as a potential “cash cow” as it grows in reach and popularity. Plus, you can decide what you wish to do with your blog: its yours anyway. This training will take you from just being an admirer of blogs (and recently, leaving comments on other people’s blogs) to becoming an owner of your own blog. We will take you from how to set up your blog, choosing a name, deciding what/how to write, basic tips on increasing traffic to your website and …
  2. Making Money Online:
    You must have heard about the increasingly popular seminars that try to teach you how to make money online. And odds are that you’ve been to one, but left with a “funny” taste in your mouth — and a few naira off your account. Why are you not making money, while the seminar organizers are getting richer? Well, maybe its because you’ve been taught the wrong things — or haven’t been empowered with the tools that make the difference between “lesson notes” and “practical application”. Enters the “180 Degrees Making Money Online” training! How exactly can you make money online without getting involved in fraud? How can you ensure that each day, a few keeps waiting for you in your online account? Would you love to learn from those who combine experience with the passion to empower you?
  3. Navigating International Meetings:
    At some point in your career, you would love to look back and see how you moved from Personal Development to Global Participation. But a lot comes with global participation — one of which is participation in international meetings. This need to understand how to “navigate” international meetings is a popular need. From identifying which meetings exist, deciding which is relevant, finalizing travel plans, actual participation and post-meeting issues, there are people who can share thoughts with you and help you understand what to do. While there’s no formula to the process, the facilitator(s) for this training have grown from where you are today to the point where they now navigate international meetings with so much ease. If you wish to join this flight that will take you closer to global participation.
  4. Social Enterprise Development:
    Gone are the days when people stayed away from the social issues they so much wanted to address because of the fear of ending up as a pauper. You can now combine the value of solving social issues with the comfort of earning revenue… and as it is said, “there’s nothing like doing what you love to do — especially solving a societal problem — and being paid for it”. If you’ve heard the phrase, “social entrepreneurs” and there’s a click in your mind, or you are interested in understanding how to move your non-profit ideas into the realm of sustainability, then this training is for you. Combining proven business concepts with passionate social delivery, this training will explain to you how tomorrow’s most important people will be social entrepreneurs — people who solve problems, and are paid for it!

Please send an eMail to 180@generissolutions.com to confirm your interest. Training holds on June 17th 2006 at the Generis Solutions Training Room, 5th Floor, L’Monarch Plaza, Opebi, Ikeja, Lagos, 01 794 16 02.

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Adeolu Akinyemi
June 11, 2006

The law of the field


Growing up for me was an adventure. I had and lived with parents who loved to farm. We would wake up early one morning and head straight to the farm. I can vividly remember competitions on who finished planting his long row of maize first, who was the expert at throwing a couple of corn from 4 feet and landing it in the hole with precision. I remember growing my own farm, where I had Okro that was 1 foot long. I even remember a time when I led some of my friends on a bee hunting adventure. Maybe someday we’ll get to talk about that in details.

Key point today however, is that I’ve been on a farm, I know how the feild works, and I understand the laws that govern the field. Interstingly, these laws also govern the field of life. Lets examine two. Continue reading →

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Adeolu Akinyemi
June 8, 2006

In a HURRY…?


Where are you rushing to? What’s the hurry? These are questions I have been asked growing up, at different times and occassions. I can vividly remember a time when an uncle brought it to my notice that I was eating with close to the speed of light, talking like I had hot coals on my tongue, certainly I must be in a hurry to get somewhere.

Growing up however, I have discovered that there are things that can be rushed, and their are some things that you better allow to run their full course. A proverb says that we don’t rush up hot stew, else our mouths will get burnt, and we will not be able to use burnt mouth to lick cold stew. In other words, when the chicken lands carelessly on the rope, neither the rope nor the chicken are comfortable. I have since been able to draw up a list of what you can do in a hurry and what you shouldn’t.

In a hurry to be rich, men kill themselves

In a hurry to to grow up, girls betray themselves

In a hurry to arrive, guys end up “the late”

In a hurry to be great, many bite the hook and miss the bait.

What’s your hurry? The meal taken in haste seldom is enjoyed. The chinese say that when you eat for an hour, you won’t be hungry for long. Don’t rush the clock, savour the moment. While my search brought me to see that haste was waste, I also discovered that there is a time to crawl, walk, run or even fly. There are times you must fly!

If there is one thing I’m in a hurry to do today…I’m in a hurry to be happy!

Happiness is an interesting concept. It’s not really a matter of events, its usually a function of perception of events. Happiness is a state of thoroughly enjoying what one does. Of all things in life, happiness is not something your can successfully postpone, if you are not happy today, it reduces your chances of ever becoming happy.

“We all live with the objective of being happy; our lives are all different and yet the same.” -Anne Frank

While in life you ought not hurry for many things, happiness is a state that must characterise you today! The seed is similar to the harvest, in fact you can estimate the fruit from it’s seed, in some cases the seed is even in the fruit. Today is a seed, if happiness is not in the seed, tell me, should it be in the future? In different ways, happiness is what we all seek. We must not however wait and wish, that by some stroke of genius or in ways unknown, we will suddenly find ourselves living lives of happiness. Happiness requires action!
Action may not always bring happiness; but there is no happiness without action. -Benjamin Disraeli

So ask yourself, what will make me truely happy? What will I do for the rest of my life if money was available to live my dreams. Happy futures are never a product of sorrowful pasts. Happiness is the reward of those who find happiness all through the journey on the way to happiness. Successful people are usually people doing what they enjoy, until success comes.

Don’t mortgage your happiness…find what makes you happy today…and commit your energies to it! At the end, one man said, all that will matter in our actions is whether or not it won the respect and admiration of God, family and friends. When the chips are down, what matters most is happiness.

And in case you are wondering if being happy is entirely a selfish do it now project? Try these quotes on for size
John Templeton
Happiness comes from spiritual wealth, not material wealth… Happiness comes from giving, not getting. If we try hard to bring happiness to others, we cannot stop it from coming to us also. To get joy, we must give it, and to keep joy, we must scatter it. .

Lord Byron
All who would win joy, must share it; happiness was born a twin.

Happiness is like peeing your pants: Everyone can see it, but only you can feel it’s warmth. –Unknown –:))Are you happy today? Find true happiness…the seed is in the fruit and the fruits in the seed.

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Adeolu Akinyemi
June 2, 2006

What Future Do You Desire??


Many of us have dreams, for some, it’s childish fantasies that died off as soon as maturity was reached, for some of us, it’s that pie in the sky that keeps us motivated to give our bests today, and for yet some, it’s the freedom of expression we get when we have laboured hard in lifes farm and are at the end crowned with the victors hat. At least, we all had dreams.

It’s also interesting to note, that our proverbs and idioms allude to the significance and power of dreams. It has been said, that he that does not look ahead, will always remain behind. It is also said that thoughts and dreams are the foundations of our being -Nigerian Proverbs. In the midst of these strong words however, many of us have decided to leave our dreams where they came from – for some of us, on our beds. The quest for survival has been so demanding that to dream has been viewed as to engage in a pastime of babies. When a young child says he wants to become a pilot today, we muse, we’ve had those dreams before. Dreams! It has almost taken a new definition, “Childish fantasies which usually may never come to pass”. In obliterating our God given abilities to dream, we have submitted ourselves to observers rather than proactive contributors to our existence. We need to change our paradigms, give breath to our childlike whims and dare to dream.

Haven laid that foundation, I have a question for you. What future do you desire for yourself? Take time out to answer this question, because you’ll find what I’m about to say next instructional.

Have you ever wondered about the paradigm of thought that says, rob today to pay tommorow? Dim your present to brighten your future? e.t.c. This school of thought assumes that we can pay the price for tomorrow by reducing what we consume today. It’s the school behind noble things like sacrifice, paying a price, lucubrating (burning the midnight oil), sleeping late, and waking up early. It’s a very great school of thought. I believe in it. Strange enough however, this school of thought has also birthed some errors. The thoughts that emanate as errors come in the form of, you can’t always live your future today, you must be willing to endure the present to create your desired future, suffer now, enjoy later, NO WAY SIR!! Read it again to be absolutely clear, many of us have lived our lives with this belief. It is alright if I do not enjoy what I am doing today, tomorrow will be better. I dare to challenge you and say, you can think well about what you will do with your life if you had all the money in the world, and start doing it today!!

We are who we think we are, our lives will move in the direction of our most predominant thought. Out of the thoughts of our hearts, flow the issues that gives direction and guidance to life. The future is controlled from the present! This may sound all theoretical, but give it closer thought. The seed is a smaller version of the fruit, the baby is a smaller, yet complete version of the old. Whatever is not in your life today will not be there in 20yrs time! If you are unhappy today, take a 180 degrees turn, because the future will not be made of ingredients that are unreal today. If you are not making money today, you will not become rich tomorrow. It will begin to sound like a common theme, but no, if you wait till you have all the resources you desire to live the life of your dreams, the perfect moment will never come. It is by advancing in the line of your dreams that the resources to give you greater experession will come!

Dreams come true. Without that possibility, nature would not incite us to have them. –John Updike

Dreams are our connectors to the future. We dream because the sovereign powers of the universe desire to give us an appetite for the futures they are willing to create. Henry Thoreau, a renown Harvard graduate with great reputations as an author and a philosopher wrote, I have learned this at least by my experiment: that if one advances confidently in the direction of his dreams, and endeavors to live the life which he has imagined, he will meet with a success unexpected in common hours. Dreams come true! Not everybody has your dreams, not even everybody can dream your dreams. Owner of the biggest entertainment empire in the world today, Walt Disney, also a world-renowned dreamer is quoted as saying, “If you can DREAM it, you can DO it. The reason why you have that dream, is because somewhere within you, lies dormant the potentials to make it reality. Don’t bury your dreams, live your dreams. It’s never too late until you are late. Success in living your dreams does not have an age bracket. Pick your life up today, and begin to consciously live in the direction of your dreams. Dreams come true!

All our dreams can come true – if we have the courage to pursue them. –Walt Disney

Excerpts from Career Guide -By Adeolu Akinyemi

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