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Book Review, Personal development

Friday Book Review with Chuks | Turning Pro by Steven Pressfield

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Going through Steven Pressfield’s book is making me think deeper. He resounds the principle of work again and again and also… emmm…

I think you just need to go through the content yourself so I don’t spoil your taste.

(How’s the new year? That’s a view from the back of the office, towards a farmland… There have been serious weather fluctuation. Suddenly, we woke up and it’s the harmattan breeze again 😔… I’m in Enugu, Nigeria. What about you?)

So, how do I Turn Pro?

The Points!
  • When we are afraid to pursue our true calling, we pursue a shadow calling instead.
  • The shadow way of living is the way an amateur lives.
  • The more time we spend living this shadow life, the farther we go from the real thing and it gets more difficult to get back to it. (I feel this happens to most young folks. We hide under school, work and degrees. We deceive ourselves whereas we know what we are capable of doing. Yet, for fear and perhaps, to make some persons happy – which might not be bad – we opt for a lower life).
  • Habit is what differentiates the amateur from the professional.
  • Turning PRO starts with a single decision but must be sustained with consistent action.

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Turning Pro is not for everyone. It’s free but requires sacrifice.

When you Turn Pro, your life becomes easier not without challenges (you enjoy the bullets because you know you’re meant for the war).

There’s an unconscious voice that we hear that tells us what our Pro is. Yet, most people ignore it.

The fear of the amateur is the fear of success… the fear of living up to what is meant for him or her.

The amateurs get their identity from others. They are scared of standing out, as being unique.

The Quotes…

“Practise before you need it so that when you do you will have it.”

“Turning Pro is free but it is not easy. You don’t have to take a course or buy a product. All you have to do is change your mind.”

“Sometimes when we are terrified of embracing our true calling, we’ll pursue a shadow calling instead. That shadow career is a metaphor for our real career.”

“The amateur life is our youth. It’s our hero’s journey. No one is born a Pro. You’ve got to fall before you hit bottom, and sometimes that fall can be a hell of a ride.”

“Resistance hates two qualities above all others: concentration and depth. Why? Because when we work with focus and we work deep, we succeed.”

The amateur prizes shallowness and shuns depth…

“Professionals don’t wait for inspiration, they acts in anticipation of it.” (I pimped this one).

“The Pro will share the wisdom with other professionals – or with amateurs who are committed to becoming professionals.”

“Our intention as artists is to get better to go deeper, to work closer and closer to the bone.”

Questions?!

I need to be Michael Jackson now or William McDowell who both sang songs describing how I feel now:

Speechless and I’m at a loss for words respectively.

Going through the book is just an experience. But let’s see…

Are you a Pro? (And this has nothing to so with whether you’re working with Access Bank or Glo or you have your startup).

Remember he said, it’s not for everyone. Someone will read this and just open a new tab. No problem! But if you’re a Pro, you’ll know.

To close this, think about these few questions:

  • What is making you scared of living that life that’s so visible in your mind?
  • Are you scared of even listening to that voice? (I know that it speaks to everyone. Yes, it does.)
  • Who will live that life if you don’t?
Personal development

My 18 Best Quotes on Goals.

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I love quotes. They simply simplify the whole idea. Enjoy it!

When you set a goal, you expose who is disinterested in you.

Mike Murdock

Until you set goals, there’s no reason to value time.

Mike Murdock

Your goals and dreams will never happen if you don’t Sow Labor Into Time.
Brenda Diann Johnson

Create your desired outcome. No one else will do it for you.
Tom Abbott

If your goals aren’t big enough to scare you, they’re not important enough to get you to do the work.
Richie Norton

A goal is a goal when it is set outside your comfort zone.

Sukant Ratnakar

Once a Goal is reached all the hard work don’t seems so hard but worth it. Then, we can laugh of pass struggles.
Maria Boria

The vitality of youth is to employ all your might to pursue your visionary goals.

Lailah Gifty Akita

Goals are meant for today. Dreams are meant for tomorrow.

Anthony T. Hincks

Edward: You know what the difference is between a dream and a goal? he used to say to me. A plan.

Jodi Picoult

There is no telling how many miles you have to run while chasing a dream.

Unknown

We should set our goals; then learn to control our appetites. Otherwise, we will lose ourselves in the confusion of the world.

Hark Herald Sarmiento

We spend too much time keeping up with celebrities. They’re living their dreams, what about you? Are you where you want to be in life? Get off the couch, turn off Ferris

u dobt get . you create . and start achieving your goals.

Bianca Frazier

Someday” is a disease that will take your dreams to the grave with you.

Timothy Ferris

You don’t get time. You create time.

Sanhita Baruah

If we write our dreams and goals down, we dramatically increase our odds of realization. If we share them with others, they become potent and alive.

Kristin Armstrong

If you are not able to see your goals, they will take longer to achieve, and sometimes “longer” is “never.

Honoree Corder

The trouble with not having a goal is that you can spend your life running up and down the field and never score.

Bill Copeland

For me, I feel and know that 2020 is a blessed year. And that’s why I’ll take actions in line with my goals.

What about you? Don’t quit until you win!

Book Review, Career Development, Personal development

FRIDAY BOOK REVIEW WITH CHUKS | MANAGE YOUR DAY TO DAY: Build Your Routine, Find Your Focus and Sharpen Your Creative Mind by Jocelyn K. Glei

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Going through this book gives a broader perspective of the time management framework.

I’m in Enugu (Coal City, Nigeria) but I also understand that the vibe in Lagos is on a higher level. Several times, I ask myself,“Do you want to be a local player or a global player? “

This alone gets me thinking and more importantly for 2020, I’m having a whole new structure for my time. Why? I want to be a global player and this book has helped shown me how.

Can we ride and see it?

The POINTS?!

  • Do your most productive work early in the day and reactive works later in the day.
  • Learn to organize your workspace to inspire work. Like set a particular music or set the tables in a manner that tells your mind it’s time to work.
  • Learn to block out time daily when no one will disturb you no matter what. (I’m personally learning this… So, from 8am till 11am, it’s hard to catch me free.)
  • Schedule time for creative thinking. This can be different from work. It can be early in the morning before dashing out for work.
  • Don’t allow perfectionism eat you up. This has nothing to do not going for the best. However, use all you’ve got to deliver the best you can while knowing when to submit a work and move on to the next.

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  • Much of what we are taught about multitasking is scam. Studies have shown that the tasks that we can multitask effectively are those that are highly automatic like walking and talking… dancing and singing… While in the activities that require our conscious mind, what we do is task switching. And task switching is highly unproductive. The alternative? Finish a task and move or break a task into bits of finishes so you can take breaks at those times.
  • Learn to build renewal into your work day. As you do your work, find time to rest. (This disturbs me the most. The average African employee and employer sees rest as waste of time. We are the least present at vacations. We don’t rest yet the economic systems speak of who is ahead.)
  • One of the authors, Lori Deschene says this about the social media thing:

  • Keep your long term vision or goals in front of you so that it helps when you prioritize your day.
  • Place huge value on your imaginations than on technology.
  • What if you do things everyday at certain times just to play, for fun?

QUOTES!

“I don’t wait for moods. You accomplish nothing if you do that. Your mind must know it has got to get down to work.” Earl S. Buck

“We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.” Aristotle

“It’s not the load that breaks you down. It’s the way you carry it.” Lena Horne

(I melted when I saw this quote directly above. If you did physics in school, you’ll grab it faster.)

“Tell me to what you pay attention and I will tell you who you are.” Jose Ortega

“The difference between successful people and very successful people is that very successful people say no to almost everything.” Warren Buffet

“You can do anything but not everything.” David Allen

(Wow! My head is telling that the reason for this is that our time and energy is limited.)

“Look at the word responsibility – RESPONSE-ABILITY – the ability to choose your response.” Stephen Covey

“Your mind will answer most questions if you learn to relax and wait for the answer.” William S. Burroughs

“Creativity is not a talent. It is a way of operating.” John Cleese

(While I agree with the last line of this quote, I disagree with the first line. What do you think?)

“Inspiration is for amateurs, the rest of us just show up and get to work.” Chuck Close

“The artist who aims at perfection in everything achieves it in nothing.” Eugene Delacroix

(Hmmm… I think this doesn’t mean don’t strive for excellence.)

“Creation is in part merely the business of foregoing the great and small distractions.” E. B. White

The Questions?!

The primary question this book poses for me is this: Do I have control over my time? Have I scheduled my most important tasks for the day on the most important times of the day?

Check the 12 points I mentioned above and gauge it with your life.

2020 is coming soon…! The website of the editor of this book jkglei.com/

Book Review, Career Development, Personal development, Personal finance

Friday Book Review with Chuks | The 15 Laws of Growth by John Maxwell.

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One of the best books I’ve read about personal growth is this. In fact, it’s like a ritual for me to read it before each year starts.

I’ll share few of the laws and insights from the book and if you need it, you can oder for it here.

  • The Law of Intentionality – Growth doesn’t just happen. Waking up and sleeping daily might require no much work but personal growth is different.
  • The Law of Awareness – You must know yourself to grow yourself. In essence, if your colleague in the office goes for a training on content creation yours might be for public speaking, ending what you know you need.
  • The Law of the Mirror – You must see value in yourself to add value to yourself. Don’t you think this might be the reason you’ve not bought those books… you don’t think you deserve it?!
  • The Law of Reflection – Learning to pause allows growth to catch up with you. Just think about it.
  • The Law of Environment – Growth thrives in conducive surroundings. Your company can inspire growth in you or dissuade you from growing.

  • The Law of the Rubber Band – Growth stops when you loose the tension between where you are and where you could be. Hmmm… Are you too comfortable in First Bank that you don’t want to grow again?
  • The Law of Tradeoffs – You have to give up to grow up. Anywhere you want to grow, you must be ready to sacrifice something or else…!
  • The Law of Modelling – It’s hard to improve when you have no one but yourself to follow. Even self made billionaires receive inspiration from others – dead or alive.
  • The Law of the Ladder – Character Growth determines the height of your personal growth.
  • The Law of Contribution – Growing yourself enables you to grow others.

Lots of quotes to look at but then we can just look at these:

“A time comes when you need to stop waiting for the man you want to become and start being the man you want to be.” Bruce Springsteen

“No one can produce great things who is not thoroughly sincere in dealing with himself.” James Russell Lowell

“Almost every man wastes part of his life in attempt to display qualities which he does not possess.” Samuel Johnson

“You cannot win if you do not begin. The people who get ahead in the world are the ones who look for the circumstances they want and if they can’t find them they make them.” John Maxwell

“Most of the accomplishments I’ve achieved in life I began to attempt before I was really ready.” John Maxwell

“If you put a small value on yourself rest assured the world will not raise the price.” John Maxwell

“There are things in life that you have to work for and there are things you have to wait for.” Anonymous

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“The great composer does not set to work because he is inspired, but becomes inspired because he working.” Ernest Newman

“The first step toward success is taken when you refuse to be a captive of the environment you first find yourself in.” Mark Caine

“God’s gift to us: potential. Our gift to God: developing it.” Unknown

And now the part I love the most… Better is a wise question than an array of unsolicited answers.

  • Do you think you’ll wake up one day in 2020 and notice that you’re a footballer without training?
  • Are there TEDx videos you need to listen to as get more insight into public speaking?
  • What apps are you downloading for 2020 because you know you need them to grow?
  • Do you think the place you live now is inspiring you to dream bigger? What if you begin to spend time at Kilimanjaro restaurant once in a week?
  • Who is the best in your field in Lagos or Enugu or in any state in Nigeria?
  • Can you book an appointment to meet with the person in 2020?
  • Are there personal projects you’ll undertake in 2020 to stretch you beyond your comfort zone? (Open that manuscript again and complete the book…)

  • Are there books you need to read in 2020? (Am actually going through that now and into 2020.)
  • Are you worth a training of N40,000? If yes, what if you go for a Project Management training in 2020?
  • What certification does your organization requires for you to be promoted?
  • Who would you want to help grow in 2020? (Remember, wing yourself will help you grow other.)
  • What did you fear the most in 2019? How can you break that in 2020?

The truth is this: life does not get better with time and that includes 2020. It only gets better by choice.

Career Development, Personal branding, Personal development

FRIDAY BOOK REVIEW WITH CHUKS | THE ONE THING BY GARY KELLER.

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Book review of The ONE Thing by Gary Keller.
Book Review

In 12 points, 12 quotes and 12 questions, you’ll learn a whole lot from the book.

12 POINTS

  1. Extraordinary success is sequential not simultaneous. There’s a challenge: life doesn’t line up everything for us accordingly. And that’s why successful people line up what their life is about around their priorities.
  2. The maxim that everything matters equally is a big lie and a thief to being effective in life.
  3. Multitasking is also a stain. It’s not as effective as we think. Do one thing at a time.
  4. Focus on selective discipline instead of self discipline. Give one habit time before going in for another.
  5. Your will power can be weak. So, learning to use it yo your advantage can make a whole difference.
  6. Living a balanced life is a myth too. The idea is this, at each points of our lives, we must decide what is important and give it full attention.
  7. Stop the small thinking. Open your mind and think big. Act big and get the big results over time.
  8. The questions you ask in life determines the direction you move.
  9. “Our purpose sets our priority and our priority determines the productivity our actions produce.”
  10. Learn to live by priority. Everything does not deserve equal attention. Learn to live for productivity.
  11. Learn to follow the path of mastery and live a purposeful life that makes you stick to what you see until you achieve it. Also learn to be accountable for your life.
  12. Success is an inside job, not an external show.

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12 QUOTES

Planning is bringing the future into the present so that you can do something about it now – Alan Lakein

Be like a postage stamp – stick to one thing until you get there – Josh Billings

It is those who concentrate on but one thing at a time who advance in this world – Og Mandino

There can only be one most important thing. Many things may be important, but only one can be most important – Ross Garner

No one succeeds alone. No one – Authors

The ONE Thing becomes difficult because we’ve unfortunately bought into too many others – Authors

It’s not enough to be busy, so are the ants. The question is, what are we busy about? – Henry David Thoreau

The majority of what you want will come from the minority of what you do – Authors

It’s not that we have too little time to do all the things we need to do, it’s that we feel the need to do too many things in the time we have – Authors

You can become successful with less discipline than you think, for one simple reason: success is about doing the right thing, not about doing everything right… When you do the right thing, it can liberate you from having to monitor everything – Authors

… it would be accurate to say that we fail our way to success. Don’t let small thinking cut your life down to size. Think big, aim high, act bold. And see just how big you can blow up your life – Authors

Anyone who dreams of an uncommon life eventually discovers there is no choice but to seek an uncommon approach to living it – Authors

Questions from the book The ONE Thing by Gary Keller
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12 QUESTIONS

  • “What’s the one thing you can do this week such that by doing it everything else would be easier or unnecessary?”
  • Are the things you’re doing today a priority for you or a priority for others?
  • What’s your one thing? (Use this to develop a vision for your life, career and everything).
  • What’s your “the one thing” now? (Use this to follow through with your daily priorities.)
  • What are you currently giving time to that’s not relevant to your “one thing”?
  • Who are the persons that increase you when you spend time with them?
  • Are you spending more time with them?
  • What do you want to master?
  • What are you doing everyday to be a master at it?
  • When you fail in the line of your personal vision, do you blame it on others or you accept responsibility and keep moving?
  • Do you think it’s possible to have a balanced life? Or what does having a balanced life mean to you?
  • Between your personal development and the economy, which do you think affects your success the most?

Get on these questions and see where you need make any adjustments. Next week Friday, we’ll have another book that’ll help you focus and build your personal brand.

You can buy The ONE Thing by Gary Keller now.