The Treasure of Self Knowledge

A man’s identity is one of the greatest forces of power he will ever reckon with. A deep seated understanding of who you are and a continuous flow of knowledge of your history, your resources, your strengths and weaknesses is enough to set you up for success in life. I have seen it happen in my short time. When the ignorant come to tap from this reserve of power their lives literally change. Where they walked hunched, feeling sorry for themselves, dancing awkwardly to the demanding beats of society, swaying like an old whore, they break off the bondage and fly away to do exploit like a butterfly from the cocoon.
Many still wonder why many African countries are backward in many regards in comparison to the western nations. Why electricity is not stable, why the economic climates of the countries are not thriving, or why after many years of independence from the colonial outpost they still do not get their heads around the concept of democracy practically? The answer is buried under the rubble of wars, terrorism and epidemics that have ravaged the continent for centuries. Lying there inside the treasure chest is the core of the African story; who they are and what they possess and what they can do with it. But sadly enough the many decades of slavery and colonialism have ravaged mama Africa, in fact it is a surprise she still stands. Leadership summits like the recent one hosted by Barack Obama may come in handy, but Africa must find her own way at the end. Billions of dollars in aid may come from the United States, the United Kingdom and China but still yet Nigerians, Libyans, Monrovians, Somalians and their brothers and sisters in other African nations must begin to open the Books of History and discover how they fit in the Big Picture called Earth.
The whole same concept applies to the individual. The story of his success and the journey to it begins with a discovery of the potent force of purpose. Everyone is asking ‘why am I here on earth?’ ‘Why was I born to the country I was born into?’ ‘Why do I have the experiences I did while I grew older?’ There are certain things in life we may never understand but these questions must be answered for us to live fulfilled. They might not come as an epiphany, but gently, in a slow mischievous whisper, pouring forth gradually year after year.
Your identity is locked in the discovery of your purpose. Find that purpose. Until you do this the darkness and emptiness will remain. You were not made to live an ordinary life; great things are in stock for you today. Stop thinking less of yourself but make demands on your capacity for results. You are a success!
Oluwatobi Gbemisola
Tweet me @TobiGbemisola

Acheiving Immortality

Immortality.  The dream of mankind for ages. It has always been mankind’s greatest ambition to live forever and to elude the Grim Reaper. Attempts have been made but these all ends up in failure. Technologies have been created, chemicals concocted, and rituals made but humans end up still dying. The pain associated with death is so negatively painted in the minds of people that losing a loved one or dying is not to be imagined to occur. But death is inevitable. There is no other way around it.

But even has death takes you away; there is still a way of existing in the minds and hearts of beloved ones. Even though we have been long gone, it can still be as if we were still there, in their very presence. That way my friend, that formula or technology, whatever you want to call it, is nothing other than leaving a legacy behind. All through history in several countries of the world there are legacies that have been left behind by different men and women. Whether these legacies were profitable or not, what matters is that they eventually achieved the goal of being immortal, not in their physical forms but in the unseen forms of respect, adoration or hatred of the person in question. Albert Einstein, Mahatma Ghandi, Theodore Roosevelt, Adolf Hitler, Michael Jackson, Pablo Picasso, Jesus Christ, The Wright Brothers, Stephen Covey...the list is endless. What set this people apart from the average man is the ability or effort to do the extra ordinary, to live unlike other men and create thought systems contrary to what society regards has been standard or conventional. Each one of them were known for something in particular, they were unique as every other individual is but what set them apart is that they discovered that uniqueness and keyed into it. They were people of purpose. And that purpose determined every other thing in their lives.

One day everyone around right now will give their last breath and leave this world for another. But before you go, what do you intend leaving behind for the people still around, for the next generation? It would be selfish to come to this world and not change a thing in it, for at least some had to sacrifice their very lives for things to be different. A life of legacy is a life of purpose.