One day at a time

The cosmos-complex but not chaotic- gives a clue into how our daily lives should evolve. Look at the sky on a summer night, and you will observe our galaxy, the Milky way-a portion of the cosmos interspersed with stars. That is, of course, no news. It will interest you, though, to know that there is some underlying order in the layout of these arrays of stars, albeit not effortlessly conspicuous to the mind. It is beautiful to behold every star continuously tracing its path without fail! The order or patterns of each unique star is responsible for the overall beauty of the cosmos. Each star staying where it ought to makes the bigger puzzle fit perfectly.

An account by NASA: It’s normal for us to find patterns in natural arrangements of things. For example, most people can imagine they see faces or other familiar objects in some clouds or rock formations. It’s the same with the stars. Ancient observers, without the benefit of our modern understanding of the nature of stars and space, saw these patterns and thought they might be important symbols. Cultures throughout history have created different names and descriptions for the arrangements of stars. The constellations most of us are familiar with were created by people living in the Mediterranean and the Middle East. Many of the stories of the constellations tell us about the myths and legends of the people who gave them names thousands of years ago, but they tell us nothing about the stars themselves.

If stars never changed, then constellations wouldn’t change. But the stars, including the Sun, travel in their own separate orbits through the Milky Way galaxy. The stars move along with fantastic speeds, but they are so far away that it takes a long time for their motion to be visible to us. You can understand this by moving your finger in front of your eyes. Even when you move it very slowly, it may appear to move faster than a speeding jet that is many miles away.

Beyond the beauty, the complex structure of the galaxy is stunning and should serve us as manuals for finding order, and not chaos, in difficult situations.

Everything around, from our vast galaxy of stars to the most minor atomic structures, clearly spells out the word “complex:” And against this backdrop, we, as mortals, are often faced with problems that appear to require immortal abilities to solve. Sometimes, we are faced with financial hardship or some health crisis. Occasionally, our problem is the illusion of being caught up in a problem. In all propensity, at one time or the other, one will face a situation that one has never encountered before or be required to travel a path where there are no trailblazers. Be that as it may, we must find order in our life, just like the cosmos has some order. We will often be handed victory when we acknowledge, recognize, and employ this order. Conversely, when we fail to understand and, by extension, muddle up life’s inherent order, we become overwhelmed. Life comes complex, but our anxieties, worries, and despair, and not just life itself, create the chaos we often experience.

What do you do when you don’t know what to do? How do you face a difficult situation or seemingly impossible circumstances? First, you have to admit your dilemma as early as you can. But don’t stop there. Instead, find solutions to your problem, taking one step at a time. Yes, one step at a time. One step at a time, and you will achieve what would instead take a lifetime to accomplish in a short time. John Bytheway said, “Inch by inch, life’s a cinch. Yard by yard, life’s hard,” and I couldn’t agree less.

Trying to figure out life all at once will be overwhelming and will often end in disaster. Anyone who could succeed at solving life’s puzzles by the stretch of a thought, which rarely happens, perhaps, could also glory momentarily in seemingly possessing omniscient-like abilities. Unfortunately, in real life, mortals do not have omniscient-like capabilities. In living out life, you will realize that, sometimes, your hypothesis is wrong, and your assumptions are oversimplified. The world you imagined is perturbed; the world you see is the variant of the world you expected. What could you do than upping your game and adapting on the go in this kind of situation? Instead of being overwhelmed by the complexity of your circumstances, try finding out order, patterns, or strategic steps to take. Always remember: Inch by inch, life’s a cinch. Yard by yard, life’s hard.

A poem

Brick upon brick,

You can build a shelter

Penny upon penny

You can build a fortune

It is trickles upon trickles of raindrops

That makes torrents upon torrents of floodgates

Put in the efforts, little by little

You can then hope to win the title

For an account by NASA, see:https://spaceplace.nasa.gov/review/dr-marc-space/constellations.html#:~:text=The%20stars%20move%20along%20with,that%20is%20many%20miles%20away.

Money won’t make you rich, something else will.

Money won’t make you rich-that is an audacious statement to make. But, agree or disagree, money does not make people rich. What makes people rich is what we will delve into shortly. Now, go back to the theme and focus on the word “make,” which will help you build insight into what is to be discussed.

Let us take a quick detour and see a couple of analogies. First, grades do not make a student bright or intelligent. On the contrary, grades are an indicator, a kind of pointer to the fact that a student is brilliant. The grades by themselves do not make a student bright. Instead, it is a combination of lifestyles, namely: meditation, inquisitiveness or curiosity, time-keeping, dedication to study, and collaboration, just to mention a few things, that makes a student brilliant. No student becomes bright or earns good grades without doing some or all of these. Second, in the world of sports, we know that the team with the cup is the champion. That goes without argument. However, the journey to lifting the cup usually does not start with the cup. There is good training, a winning mindset, discipline, motivation, good coaching, and all of the things that make a formidable team a Champion. It is, therefore, safe to conclude that it is not the cup that “makes” the champion.

You probably have heard about a few rich guys out there. Bill Gates, Jeff Bezos, Lary Page, Mark Zuckerberg, and Warren Buffett are household names regarding the who is who in terms of riches. But just like me and some of you right now, these people could not claim a penny to their name some few years back. Somehow, somewhere along the line, their stories changed because they all figured out the right things to do to become rich. And, lest I forget, being rich is not always directly equivalent to having trillions of dollars in the bank. But being rich always directly connects with the quality of life you live. The word “rich” essentially means a full supply. It means abundant provision, having what you need abundantly. Yes, being rich has everything to do with happiness. A farmer in Punjab who could boast of an excellent crop yield will qualify as a “rich” guy as far as he could meet his basic needs. His being rich has nothing to do with having a bank account overseas or driving the latest car in town if those things are not of concern to him.

How do the rich get rich? Or what makes people rich? There is no one-fits-it-all answer. I will try to provide a few answers, though. Some people become rich by solving a problem. For example, Lary Page, by founding Google, removed the bottle-neck that people used to encounter in accessing relevant information. Thanks to him, you can get information on any subject by just the click of a finger from any part of the world. Similarly, and interestingly too, some companies have claimed that they made efficient vaccines for Covid-19, the pandemic which is ravaging the world at the moment. They have basically solved a problem and definitely will get rich, by and by. Also, according to Harv Eker, the author of Millionaire Mind, “a lot of money is a result of helping a lot of people. If you want to make a lot of money, help many people. Don’t complicate it.” Create a system that helps people; becoming rich will be a natural by-product. Another thing that makes people rich is finding wise ways to use the money you have to get the money you want. This could be as simple as cutting down on expenses, starting up or investing in a value-oriented business, or even taking up a job where you can employ your skills.

In the form of highlights, here are the things that will make you rich:

  1. A well-thought-out and adequately executed idea.
  2. What you do with the money you currently have.
  3. How many people you have helped or are willing to help

In the long run, what you do and how you do it, with or without money, makes you rich. Resources abound all around, but it takes introspection to convert resources to riches.

Money won’t make you rich, do you agree or disagree? Let me know your thoughts in the comment section

A New Nigeria II

The dream of salvaging our dear nation to the haven of hope-where the son of nobody can become somebody without knowing anybody-needs well cut-out tactics for it to materialize. Of course, hardly any warrior has won a battle without adopting strategic actions. And more often than not, it is not plurality but effectiveness that makes strategies work. After all, according to Josh Billings, life consists not in holding good cards but in playing those you have well.

In the context of Nigeria, number is a crucial factor in bringing about the paradigm shift we hope to see. It is a game of numbers! It takes more than celebs, more than the educated, and more than the politically inclined to build the nation. All hands need to be on deck. In essence, a key strategy is to bring people, in droves, to the train of a new Nigeria. Do not allow your neighbour to be a doubting Thomas at this moment. Persuade the nay-sayers. Convince as many people as possible that we need them to realize the dream of a new Nigeria. Number is something we cannot but use to our advantage. When an election comes, complacency from anyone will double the time it takes for Nigeria to convalesce from her maladies. Everyone old enough to vote should not hold back at election time. No more I don’t care attitude! Also, when it is time to hold the government we put in place accountable, let us all, not just some activists, hold our leaders responsible. We have a dense youthful population; let us utilize this number judiciously. “None of us alone can change the nation or the world. But each of us can make a positive difference if we commit ourselves to do so.”-Cornel West

Come to think of it, we are where we are today because we have always entrusted our salvation to the hands of politicians. We have often ignored to do what only we, the people, can do for all of us. America is great today because 19th and 20th century Americans, majorly entrepreneurs like Henry Ford, dwelled on what they could do for America instead of waiting endlessly for the government to make things right. Indisputably, Nigeria is home to many of the most enterprising people on earth. Although the likes of Shola Akinlade and Ezra Olubi of PayStack, Allen Onyema of Air Peace, and Mike Adenuga of Globacom are a beacon of hope in a landscape with lots of factors that wants Nigeria to be perpetually moribund, more entrepreneurs need to rise up now than ever, notwithstanding. If you need to acquire a skill, now is the time to do it. And if you must learn a trade, please do it now. Farm a land. Start a business. Feed a child. Help a neighbour. In every way you can, add value to society. This is how to build a strong nation: everyone brings value to the table. Society only listens to those who have value to add. Although, yes, only the lazy youths can expect to be silenced by the government without consequences, people who add value will always have a voice.

Today, technology is, perhaps, the most powerful tool at our disposal. What can we do with it? A lot! One, we can grow our economy with it. Two, we can leverage the power of social media to engrave the idea of a New Nigeria into the consciousness of all and sundry. Three, we can use existing technologies to facilitate social amenities for all. The list is endless. The possibilities are limitless. Technology is the bane of the 21st century, and we can only hope to win a 21st-century war with a 21st-century weapon. Glad enough, Nigerian youths are at the forefront of using technology to create a life of ease in Africa. A few names come to mind: Olanrewaju Emmanuel Akintunde, an Android engineer; Odunayo Eweniyi, the Co-Founder and Chief Operating Officer of PiggyVest; Iyinoluwa Aboyeji, Founder Flutterwave & Co-founder of Andela. These and many other youths are creating social values via technology. Perhaps we have reasons to rejoice but no reason to relent. We can do more in our numbers! We can be more intentional in using technology to affect the status quo in Nigeria.

This is the summary: Run for election in the coming election if you have what it takes to make things better, and otherwise use your votes to put the right people in power. Technocrats, use your trade not only for personal profits but also for the good of all and sundry. ” No one should be discouraged by the belief that there is nothing one person can do against the enormous array of the world’s ills, misery, ignorance, and violence. Few will have the greatness to bend history, but each of us can work to change a small portion of events. And in the total of all those acts will be written history of a generation”-Robert F. Kennedy