Rosa Parks: A Role Model for the Courage to Dare

“Have the courage to say no. Have the courage to face the truth. Do the right thing because it is right. These are the magic keys to living your life with integrity.”— W. Clement Stone

A role model of courage and personage of civil rights movement in the United States, the nimble Rosa Parks had a relatively humble beginning. She was one who couldn’t obtain a common high school diploma, until after the age of twenty, due to some straining situations in her family. Merely based on her early modest circumstances, it would be easy for any snob to disregard her.

Yet with her courage to challenge the status quo, she was one who not only became the catalyst of a great change in her country but also a heroine of civil liberties to many people across the globe. At a critical point during her days, she decided to assert herself mentally by physically refusing to move when she was unfairly commanded to do so. And the Law was on the side of the aggressor.

Rosa knew what she was getting into; she was risking arrest, her reputation and possibly incarceration. The young lady was risking a lot, all alone. Not many of us would be willing to risk even one of these real treats to our comfort zone on any given day. Think about it. 

She reveals the secret of her personal power to us now in the following words: “I have learned over the years that when one's mind is made up, this diminishes fear; knowing what must be done does away with fear.”

With a clarity of purpose and moral fortitude, her momentous decision set on fire a chain of reactions that eventually compelled the United States Supreme Court to declare bus segregation illegal and unconstitutional. She undoubtedly demonstrated the power of courage; it redefined race relations in America till today. 

After this revolutionary victory, Rosa Parks committed herself to educating the youths on the importance of freedom and the courage to unleash their potential in all situations.

Now, let’s see what we can all learn from this heroine in our day-to-day living.

Imitate Rosa Parks; Choose to Dare

In the midst of suppressive and oppressive environment, Rosa chose to stand up for herself. Even though it might seem that her effort was analogous to throwing an egg against a mountain; even though it appeared she was fighting a war she could never win. Yes, it seemed she was making an attempt at futility, yet she chose to try anyway.  As a result, she became a beacon of courage and fairness for millions of people all over the world.

For us too, if we are to make a breakthrough in any sphere of life, we must learn from Rosa Parks by choosing to dare when it is easier not to. We must bet on ourselves against the suppressive forces of a pessimistic society. We must learn to assert ourselves, when we have no supporters; step out in front, when naysayers mock; head towards a vision of justice, when the opposing pressure is huge. 

We must push forward for a worthy cause, exactly at those moments, when we face severe censure and condemnation, remembering the timeless insight of the American inspirational author, Dr. Orison Swett Marden which affirms that: “There can be no failure to a man who has not lost his courage, his character, his self respect, or his self-confidence.” And Marden concludes that, if he can retain his courage, no matter what happens, “He is still a king.” This is because he has taken complete charge of the kingdom of his mind. 

Finally, if you want to be a difference maker in your own world, imitate the heroine: choose to dare.

The Key to Finding True Fulfillment in Your Career and Business

 “Make your passion and your work, one and the same.”—Ray Dalio

Last week, I read an interesting book by the professional speaker, Todd Duncan. It is entitled, “The Power to be Your Best.” In many ways, Todd nudges us to be just that: our very best. One good thing, out of the many fine pieces of the book is the focus of today’s article: making your passion and your work, one and the same—loving what you do.

Todd narrated his presence in a seminar that was led by the sales guru, Tom Hopkins—a long time ago. On that day, he said he received the counsel that not only, instantly changed the direction of his career but the rest of his life. 

What is this golden advice? I am assuming you can’t wait to know. Keep reading friend, that’s a job that I must deliver for you, right here, right now.

In a hall filled with enthusiastic listeners, Hopkins imparted:  “There are not many things you need to get the life you deserve. In fact, every one of you in this room possesses the ingredients for success. But more than any other one thing, you MUST love what you do.”

Loving What You Do

While Hopkins’ last sentence might appear a little didactic to some people, if you pause to think deeply about it, you will realize the truth embedded in his words. Arguably, it is hardly fulfilling for anyone to spend a huge portion of a very limited life span, doing what he or she doesn’t really enjoy. 

Tell me, what is worth pursuing if it is devoid of deep emotional satisfaction that naturally accompanies any labour of love?  For you to answer this question, first consider the following words from the co-founder of Apple Inc., Steve Jobs. He contends: “Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. And the only way to do great work is to love what you do. ” With this, I think I can guess your answer right.

Unifying Your Work and Passion

As simple as that “unity” may sound, it is no easy thing. Many seekers couldn’t get it. A lot of people have died with their music still buried deep within them. They merely managed to earn a living, neither enjoying what they did nor did what they really enjoyed. They failed to live out their heart desires: their true dreams. 

Why so?  You may wonder. Because finding what you like to do is one thing but learning to do it really well for it to become a unique business is another thing entirely. And that’s the exact challenge the American billionaire investor, Ray Dalio throws to me and you know now: to make our passion and our work, one and the same.

One approach to address such a difficult challenge is by asking yourself a key question like this:

“What am I really passionate about that can significantly benefit the society?”

Or, put it another way…

“Can my dominant passion be channeled to solve a specific problem around me?”

In many cases, if we think deeply enough, and are willing to do the necessary work to make something happen, there is almost always a practical answer to that powerful question. 

For us, the huge responsibility here is to cultivate a useful skill—with our dominant passion—that is highly valued by others. And to achieve such a feat is to realize the rare joy of living a dream which many only hope to achieve. By making a business out of doing what you love, you naturally love what you do. Your passion and work become a unified one, at the same “molecular” level. 

Finally, whether you succeed at this feat sooner or later, you must keep the words of a jazz superstar, Ella Fitzgerald on top of your mind in your quest to finding fulfillment and joy in your business and career. She said: “Just don't give up trying to do what you really want to do. Where there is love and inspiration, I don't think you can go wrong.”

Not surprisingly, Bill Gates thinks quite the same; to find fulfillment and joy in your work, just be true to yourself and follow your heart.

Resolve to Make Something Happen

“If we all did the things we are really capable of doing, we would literally astound ourselves.”—Thomas Edison

Today, I am glad to tell you that I have published my first book. It is entitled:

“RESOLVE TO RISE: By Learning from Dynamos Who Took Full Possession of Their Own Minds.” For now, it is exclusively available for sale on Amazon.com:

https://www.amazon.com/RESOLVE-RISE-Learning-Dynamos-Possession-ebook/dp/B07BVPTJLM/

Below is an excerpt from the book:

“Resolve to Rise” is a call to prominence and meaning. It is a prod for us to overcome the hurdles on our paths to fulfillment—whether tangible or emotional—no matter what. Inspired by the veracity of the German philosopher, Johann Gottlieb Fichte’s thought when he asserted that, “He who is firm in will molds the world to himself.” The author is thereby urging his readers to become such a person—here and now.

Resolve is essential to greatness. It is the art of taking complete possession of the mind by utilizing its powers, unremittingly, for the realization of any and all dreams. The art here is defined by Oxford dictionary as a skill that can be attained through study, practice or observation. Consequently, I believe everyone can resolve for excellence and purpose; as a weak muscle can be made strong through training and exertion; likewise, an ordinary person can become extra-ordinary via learning and application. Simply, the urge for all to do so, is the major purpose in writing this book. 

To resolve genuinely denotes making a firm decision to realize a vision; being determined to do something, solve a difficulty, or overcome a challenge, no matter what it takes; however long it takes. Resolve is the fixed condition of the mind where one is absolutely determined not to quit until one discovers precisely what one seeks. Though this may appear too hard for a common person to achieve, the amazing life stories in this book are a proof that, it can be done—by anyone. Within the book are narratives of sheer mortals who decided to take full possession of their own minds, and because of this, they were able to muster seemingly super-human spirit to do and be what the majority of people thought was impossible.

Now, this work is intended to awaken the same vital force in the life of an average person today and forever. To goad us to resolve for the best, even in the face of the most intractable of circumstances, when it may seem we have no other choice than to surrender our will to the dictates of apparently overwhelming conditions.

Undoubtedly, if we can make our will defy circumstances, we can always rise above them. On one hand, if we arouse our decisive spirit and firm resolve, nothing will be practically impossible for us. On the other hand, if we fail to achieve anything whatsoever, we must positively accept that our resolve to succeed was plainly not tough enough. To resolve to rise is to become invincible; and it means when we lose, we must never lose the lesson; it means at every reverse, we must begin resolutely again and again. And by so doing, all setbacks will fortify us to reach the summit of our quests in the end.

Whether we call it persistence, perseverance, tenacity or grit and any other word we may choose, the main thing is, at the core, the essence of all of them is: fixity, firmness of character, the rigid verve of a single-minded vision. It is that forceful state of mind definitely fixed on a purpose, and will never leave any room for neither vacillation, nor wavering in the face of challenges, difficulties and predicaments—or even insidious ease.

Furthermore, gutless resolve that may permit voluntary surrender when the going gets really overwhelming is far from the point—as in the case of Dr. Samuel Langley. This book is about that resolute firmness, which will never, ever give up on the pursuit of its keenest vision, no matter the severity of the odds. This is what genuine resolve really means, and it is what an American multi-billionaire, the co-founder of Amway, Richard Marvin DeVos Sr. was explaining when he stated: “If I had to select one quality, one personal characteristic that I regard as being most highly correlated with success, whatever the field, I would pick the trait of persistence, determination. The will to endure to the end, to get knocked down seventy times and get up off the floor saying, ”Here comes number seventy-one!”

With this deeper awareness on the meaning of resolve, I hope you have choose to make a decision to make something big happen for yourself and the world—right away.

Yours Truly!

Shittu Abolore

PS: Hey! Please, don’t forget to check out my book on Amazon.com. And after reading it, I humbly ask that you make the time to rate the book and write a review to boost promotion and sales. Thanks.

Continuous Improvement by Deliberate Practice: the Key to Becoming a Master of Your Craft

 

 

“The key factor separating geniuses from the merely accomplished is not a divine spark. It's not I.Q. Instead, it's deliberate practice. Top performers spend more hours (many more hours) rigorously practicing their craft.”—David Brooks 

 

 

It is almost impossible to see a valedictorian in any reputable institution of learning who didn’t go the extra-mile. For the most part, that special class of distinction comes to him or her as a result dedication and deliberately application. Every scholar attains the honour of scholarship largely due to devotion and concentration.

Likewise, becoming super successful in business would imply that you (as an entrepreneur) are far better than your competition in terms of the value you bring to the marketplace. This invariably requires some skill and unique competence.  And that exceptional skill rarely comes by chance, mostly; it comes as a result of devotion and dedication to be the best in the game. On this, Eric Butterworth the author of “Spiritual Economics” contends: “Behind every brilliant performance there were countless hours of practice and preparation.” 

Having highlighted the necessity of practice for high achievement, I still want to stress one important thing right now: an ultimate buff commits to practice far more deeply than others in the same field of study. And that’s why in the realm of uncommon merit, even legion of masters usually do have a grand master. That is, among first class students, one super-brilliant student usually stands above all others. And among blue-chip companies, one company usually stands taller than the rest. 

What I am getting at and what we want to examine today is the key secret of the most extra-ordinary performers in useful endavours of life. In other words, we want to learn how we can improve our own practice to join some of the very best in our special areas of interest. Kevin Maney, the author of “Trade-off” gets this and he writes: 

“Some people seem to have extreme natural wiring - a talent that seems to come out of nowhere. Like a music savant or prodigy. The uplifting news, though, is that many talented people don't have such natural wiring - but they forge a talent through thousands of hours of what's known as deliberate practice or deliberate performance.” This powerful skill is what we shall be studying shortly, and it is technically called: deliberate practice.

 

Deliberate Practice

 

 

What mainly differentiates self-made experts from the rest of us is nothing but committed, deliberate effort to improve functionality—relentlessly. On this intriguing subject, an American professor of psychology, Anders Ericsson, after decades of research wrote a book on the secret of peak performance, entitled, “Peak.” In the book, he reveals that as important as practice is to getting better at anything, he asserts that, it is not mere practice that moves aficionados to mastery and perfection but better practice is what does. 

 

 

In other words, how they practice is the real secret to their mastery, not just the hours they invested. According to Ericsson, they practiced with greater presence, more intensity, sharper focus and clearer sense of objective than many of their counterparts. And that’s why they are singularly better than the rest; they thoroughly employ the tactic of deliberate practice.

 

 

 

Consider this: many of us have been typing letters on the computers for quite a long period of time, but we are hardly professional typists, are we? In fact, some professional typists are not necessarily some of the best in their chosen business because, they are not really improving. They are only putting in the time. They are not deliberate enough in their quest to getting better. 

The above scenario is what the famous basketball player; Micheal Jordan was referring at one time. He said: 

“You can practice shooting eight hours a day, but if your technique is wrong, then all you become is very good at shooting the wrong way. Get the fundamentals down (right) and the level of everything you do will rise.”

 

 

So now, since we know that practice is different from deliberate practice. Then what exactly is deliberate practice?

Simply put, it means practicing, rehearsing or working for growth with a clearly defined improvement goal in mind. 

And the simple litmus test for the effectiveness of this self-training is that after your practice session; ask yourself whether you have achieved your predetermined objective or not. If you haven’t, you have merely put in the time, and yes, you may have practiced, but you have clearly not done it thoroughly—deliberately enough.

 

 

Practical Example on Writing Well:

 

 

As a writer, you should set a goal for the month to learn and master a specific fundamental of your craft. Choose one: like a specific style or a particular punctuation. Mind you, it is easy to write for years without mastering this fundamental element of professional writing, and still consider yourself a careful writer. 

 

 

However, when rubber meets the road and you face the assessment of real pros, you will suddenly be convinced that you are merely a quack, an amateur and a dilettante. To be an authentic expert, you MUST learn and do what the true masters learn and do; there is simply no way around it.

 

 

The finest in the world have neither two heads nor anything supernatural, they have only learnt the key to becoming outstanding at what they do best. And that key is deliberate practice: thorough practice. It is the very essence of genius in all callings of value. 

 

 

Finally, it can be quite tempting for us to rest on our laurels, never opting for the discomfort of growth. But if we strive to move out of our comfort zone and commit to deliberate practice, even if it means we have to risk and redefine failure on our own journey towards mastery. We can experience the fringe rewards reserved for the truly exceptional masters of their crafts as described by the American writer, Julia McNair Wright. She concludes that: "Reaching toward perfection in any one thing should lift us higher in all things; it should beget a habit of application and thoroughness."