Self-Motivation, Personal Growth and Entrepreneurship Development on DeoluAkinyemi.com

What you are about to read is a piece from a new friend and sister of mine. She has been reading from this site for a while, and one day gathered herself and contacted me. Like many of you, she felt that what I was writing was for her, and that rather than let her life pass one second at a time, she needed to get herself involved in the things she truly enjoys.  She lives over 10hours away from where I live, so meeting was difficult, but somehow we met – thanks to Holidays and Cash.

After our brief meeting that had so many other people around, we communicated again on phone once and talked about what she was doing and what she would really love to do.  I encouraged her to start her blog, and to give herself an opportunity to do what she really wants to do. I counselled her to document her progress, take pictures and really take in the feeling evoked from following her passion and heart. She decided to spend her time at an orphanage, and the piece she wrote when she came back blew my mind. Amazing things can happen when people grow in their soil. Have an exciting read. Continue Reading »

I’m consistently irritated and angered by how many people are so comfortable with the lukewarm position of being spectators. The myriads of purposeless souls who would rather watch and analyze than engage and participate. I’m puzzled at how people can become professors at subjects their only interface with is theoretical. People earn a reputation for being critical of things they are obviously shallow about, the fear of failure robs people of the will to try, the fear of death numbs people and even though they don’t die, neither do they live.

Hear this and let it ring loud in your heart, “when all you do is watch, you are less than those who lost!” Someone once said, it’s better to change, discover that change was wrong and change back, than not to have changed at all. There is always merit in action, if a process doesn’t leave you with wealth, it’s certain to leave you with a wealth of experience. It’s better to fight and lose, than give in from the beginning, it’s better to try and fail, than to analyze fromt he sidelines. Bad players win commentaries, there is no commentary for spectators. My charge to you today is simple, don’t be a mere observer. Don’t venture only into speculation, venture into engaging and participating. Rather than join the crowd of spectators airing their opininon on plenty of reasons why failure is imminent, why not enter into the arena and win or lose and forever seal your reputation as one who is involved! Continue Reading »

“The essence of life is to live it, not watch it” – Adeolu Akinyemi

The inspiration for this quote, is merely watching my mum, and listening out to the people whose lives she had touched. My mum was important to so many people, she was their “somebody” that made their lives better, their crosses easier to bear and rekindled their hope. My mum was a template for the virtous woman described in Prov 31, the more I read it, the more I remember her. I have not ceased to ask myself a fundamental question, “when would have been a good time for her to die?” The more I ask and think, the more I realize, that for us her children, for her brother, friend, business partner and lover – my dad, for her relations near and far and for the many lives she touched, there would never be a good time! There is never a good time to lose a loved one, even at 90, she’ll still have left us puzzled. I can remember my dad shedding tears at the burial of his 78yrs old mother, there is never a good time. One thing is sure though, life should be measured by donation, not duration. What matters is not how long, it’s how well! Thinking like this, I have every course to celebrate my mum’s temporary separation from me. I am confident that we’ll meet again at Jesus’ feet, I am confident that she has voluntarily joined the company that constitute the cloud of witnesses. I am happy that my mum lived a life that if I can set as benchmark for mine, I’ll be driven till I’m done! I know that God is all wise,  all his word is perfect and all his ways are just.

My mum had a glorious exit, and there are many things to learn from her life. I’ll attempt a few here, and if I’m so inspired, I’ll do a book in her honour. On the 21st of June, 2009, my mum dressed for her last church service. Very early in the morning of that day, she bade farewell to all of us her children. We had all come home from Lagos, for my younger sister’s wedding introduction the previous day. Even though the meeting was meant to have less than 60 people, my mum had killed one of her cows (yeah.. she has cows she’s rearing) and shared it for all her children and sibblings. We all saw mummy on Sunday, unaware of course that that was the last time we’ll see her alive and well. We hugged, waved and went. In a series of events, that led to her driving to church, and sitting, as ever and always beside her husband she decided to share her testimony. She raised a song as she stood up, and stood at the pulpit (Gbese ope me po, mi o le san tan, sugbon o sibe sibe, hun o se iwon ti mo le se, baba a laanu mi, e ma se o baba – My debt of thanksgiven is more than I can pay, but never the less, I will do the best I can, my father the merciful, thank you). Everyone sang along, and she started to share her testimony. She shared on, until she got to a point and announced to the church, I am feeling dizzy, at which point she slumped in the ready hands of my dad and her pastor. That was when the chariot that took her to heaven came, that was the last time she stood on her feet for the next 11 days that ended with her being taken. The doctors called it a hemorrhagic stroke, and showed that it was really up to God or nature. Between those days, she spoke for some and was unconscious for others. Her life flashed before our eyes and I’m sure hers as well. Her 56yrs have been more life than 200 regular years. Many hope to die in the lord, my mum was a child of God at her death, and even took her departure from his house -the assembly of his people. Continue Reading »

Hate him, like him, adore him or rubbish him, we all grew up to know, like and celebrate Michael Jackson. Every school had someone who could mimic him the most, almost all of us tried. In some countries where they couldn’t speak English, they claimed they knew two words of English – Michael Jackson! Michael Jackson was a phenomenum, a rare example of a mortal who hugged limelight for 45 almost uninterrupted years. Rarely do stars shine for as long as 15yrs, he trippled the rare, he was sui generis – in a class of his own. In kiddies parties in the backside of many of the countries of the world,till tomorrow, Michael Jackson uniforms are still regular features.

I couldn’t follow the CNN regular updates on his death, I was in the hospital waiting on my mum, when it happened, thankfully she is making it! It’s been difficult for me to really get my thoughts together on all the topics that are burning so hot on my mind, but for your sake I have decided to still write. I’m currently in the sun, on a bench outside the intensive care unit  of the University of Ilorin teaching hospital. Being in a hospital is an experience that balances you, close proximity with the after life brings clarity. Today, I’ll like to share a few lessons I believe we can all glean from the life of a once living legend – MJ! Continue Reading »

I and a team of my friends and colleagues rushed down from Lagos to Ilorin yesterday night. We got to Ilorin around 7.30pm haven kept about 500 students waiting for over 2hrs. Manchester United was battling it out with Arsenal within a few minutes from our getting there, but the students waited for us to come, and waited again for 3 more hours while I shared some thoughts and strategies with them on how to position themselves in the next few months.

Being in Ilorin and speaking to these crowd of eager youths was fulfilling and exciting for me. By the time we finished, it was 11pm, and we didn’t have so much time to answer questions. I am dedicating this post to them, to fill in their comments, and ask their questions. 

A few thoughts have run in my head since last night, I’ve been doing some thinking about what I said and what even I have learnt. I don’t know who is out there that needs to be blessed by these words, I can assure you however that if you practice what you are about to read, you will make history! These are not the things I spoke about, if you want that, buy the tapes , let the student body make some money Continue Reading »

I’m sure this will create different answers in different minds. Is there a game that can be classified as the greatest? Is it football, hockey, golf, cricket or basket ball? Or is it one of those not too popular games that has been discovered to have the capacity to excite and fascinate us the most? Which is the greatest game on earth, and what are the parameters that make it so? Do we measure by the thrills? The population of the world actively engaged in the game or it’s process? The degree by which our lives are affected by them or do we use statistics from opinion polls?

Whatever it is that we chose to use however, certain facts are undeniable. Football is a game that has the capacity to literally arrest a great percentage of the world in front of their television sets. More people in the world play golf and football more than any game. The thrill and the followership of basketball in America and increasingly globally is on the increase. The fanatic support of teams, of stars and of championships is tending towards idolatory. The games have become a rallying point of our social lives, we spend days watching, spend hours talking, minutes updating the scores and seconds rejoicing. These games are great, but none of them qualifies as the greatest game in the world. Continue Reading »

As much as I try to make my writing simple enough to be digested, it seems I’ll still need to try some more. I’ll start tomorrow though, today’s topic is hot, and I won’t want to dilute it with simple words. I discovered that writing the way I write generates a lot of questions in people’s minds, and that’s fine, the pathway to knowledge and wealth is to ask.  Everything you need in this life, is a question away. You don’t have, because you don’t ask. So if you need clarity on anything I write, please ask questions. I am online most of the time, and really willing to answer.

Someone once told me that my blog made him to start reconsidering his philosophy about the existence of God. He was a very cerebral guy, and had thought his way into believing that God didn’t exist and the spiritual was just an extension of the mind, e.t.c. Somehow without my saying anything directly, he had gotten some questions thrown at him that his philosophy could not explain and moved him into the path of working out a relationship with God. In my little journey on the Internet, I have found out, that he is not alone – many young people have had no experience of God, and are on a journey of questioning, testing and experimenting, and trying to find out for themselves if the world banged into existence or if there is a God somewhere. Is there proof that God exists? Do they need their research? Can it bring results? Is there any research that has been done that they can read and leverage on? Continue Reading »

1. Access to Kings

I woke up very early yesterday morning, earlier than I usually would, to leave my house for 5am and head for the Airport. I was going to meet Fela Durotoye and Bunmi Ajagbe a member of his team, on our way to see the Minister of Education in Abuja.  

It ended up being a fulfilling meeting. Our objectives met with favour, and it was a good learning experience for all of us and me in particular.  I didn’t clamour to go see the minister, I was invited to come, that felt good and like the fulfillment of desires. The day went well. Continue Reading »

There are days (a lot of days these days) when I lie down and ask myself what is really the most important thing in life. What really is worth one’s energies? Is it pleasure? Money? Impact? Wisdom? “ki la n le gan gan?” I have analysed it from a philosophical point of view, I have read the views of Aristotle – who rationalized from the need for pleasure, the desire for glory and the search for knowledge. Aristotle came to a point where according to him, the most important thing in life is the contemplative life. In the Nichomachean Ethics, Aristotle analyzes the quest of all life falls on the planes of a search for pleasurable, political or contemplative. He analyzes that all life is lived for some higher purpose, he analyzes that we all pursue happiness, and the talk goes on asking about what truly brings happiness. I would never do justice to his book in one paragraph, if you are interested, you can get more thoughts on this here, trust me though, it’s not going to be an easy read for the average mind.

I have also studied the bible extensively about the answer to the same question-”What truely is the purpose of life?” What are we here to do, and what will bring the highest fulfillment. I read the thoughts of the experiential and experimental biblical philosopher in Bible – The King in Ecclestiastes. After living a life where he pursues all that man can pursue to gain happiness – women, wisdom, fame, projects, e.t.c. He came to a final conclusion that the whole purpose of man is to fear God and obey his commandments. In my own thoughts, I have come to find out as well, that the highest priority a man can pursue meaningfully on this earth is to serve God’s purpose and desire. This purpose differs from individual to individual, but in the final analysis, life is measured against a standard, and that standard is the original intention in the mind of God for that individual. Continue Reading »

I’m in the middle of gaining clarity for the year ahead, already however, I have clear pictures of what the new year holds. The first few weeks of this month have been very remarkable for me, I have had to attend a convention, where I spoke and where I also listened. The whole Ilorin experience was capped for me by Rev. George Adegboye praying for me. As the words of those prayers and prophetic declarations were pronounced, I really wished I had a tape recorder to capture all the wordings. It wasn’t an havazard prayer, it was very specific and in a particular direction. From that prayer alone, I could see what the new year was going to birth.

Maybe you have been in meetings lately as well, where you have been told specific things about what will happen to you in the new year. Or maybe you’ve just been by yourself praying and worshiping God when you heard his voice -”my daughter, my daughter, or my son, my son”. I’m sure you also heard some great things before this year, 2008 started. I’m sure also that some of these declarations did not come to pass. You know why they didn’t come to pass this year? Do you want to know what can make the declaration of this year come to pass or not next year? Read on Continue Reading »