Disclaimer: Contrary to what the title may suggest, this article has nothing to do with Insurance as a field or as a business. Have fun reading.
I'm pretty sure we've sent all the messages, made all the calls, written BBM Statuses, tweeted, written facebook posts, posted pictures to Instagram, etc, all in the spirit of the New Year Celebration.
I'm also sure we have received and equally sent out messages such as Happy New Year, I Wish you a prosperous new year, etc., not to mention the many 'mass-produced' messages we duplicate around. Please also indicate with a wave if you spent 31st night in Church ... Hallelujah, I did too. Oh, and lest I forget, some of us have also made New Year Resolutions. OK! So, what's next?
I remember that every year always starts as 'New' and as humans, we always hope that each year turns out better than the previous one. However, we actually contribute little or nothing towards making it happen and in the end, we curse out that particular year and embrace the coming one with the same persistent hope and the cycle just continues. Count 10 years down the line and you are already feeling that your life did not turn out well or some 'villagers' were after you. The truth of the matter is this:
I wish you a prosperous New Year, New Year Resolutions, 31st Night Prayers and plain hope are NOT enough to actually achieve what you need.
It is time to get down to business. It is time to make those Resolutions happen, it is time to put those Prayers and wishes to work. If you have not done so already, think of the things you wish to achieve this year and write them down. And please, dream BIG. Remember Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, Africa's first Female President said: 'If your dreams don't scare you, they are not big enough'. It's not over-ambitiousness, it's Insurance. How? Look at it this way: a trader buys an article for 500 bucks, would he sell that article for less than that amount? No reasonable trader would do so, except the article is deteriorating and desperately needs to be sold out, in which case the trader would be blamed for not working hard enough to sell it when it was still in good condition. Now, this particular trader who wants to make profit, will ensure that he adds his overhead costs and other expenses to the selling price, in which case, he might decide to sell that article for 550, 600 bucks or even higher. If for any reason, his customers think 550 is too high, he can at least, persuade them to take it for AT MOST 510 and if push comes to shove, he could sell it for the cost price of 500 (this is worst case scenario, because in the real world, we know that no trader can comfortably make a profit of just 10 bucks on an article he bought for 500; however, the point being made is that he will at least, recoup his cost price of 500). Now, this lengthy analogy helps us summarize what I call the 'Dream BIG Insurance Policy' such that if for example, you are an entry level staff and you dream of becoming a Manager in a particular year, with the right attitude and hardwork, worst case scenario, you could end up an Assistant Manager by that year, but most likely, never a Supervisor. However, if your dream is as small as wanting to become an Assistant Manager, you may end up an Assistant Supervisor. If you dream of making Ten Million, of course you know it's a lot of money which won't be easy to make, but you commit yourself to that goal, work hard and do the needful, chances are that you may end up making Five Million or Three Million, but most likely, never thousands. But in all you do, ensure that you never make below the amount you spend trying to achieve that goal...that is when you know you have made profit. The morale of this analogy is that in reality, you may not be able to make as much as you dream, but the higher you aim, the less likely you are to fall to ground zero. It is a fact that has worked through Centuries.
So, as we herald this New Year, let us soil our hands with WORK. If you are a student, you cannot scale through without adequate preparation...in reality, it may not be about reading your books, it could be about any other preparatory method that helps you pass your courses (fair or foul means, students know better). As an unemployed graduate, please do not use that condition as an excuse; become computer literate, go online and you will be shocked to discover SEVERAL legitimate money-making opportunities; as an example that works, you could sign up to online work boards, such as www.odesk.com, www.elance.com, etc.; most of us have Blackberry, Android, Windows, I-phones, etc, yet we only use them for frivolities. We admire celebrities, read their stories and wish to be like them but we are truly not ready to be like them because we are not doing the right things. It is time to get real...gossips, chit-chats and laziness will not fetch you success. This is the time to discover your inner abilities; most of us have skills or even INTERESTS in fashion designing, hair dressing, cosmetics, etc., yet we feel they are menial and therefore, we do not want to harness them. Truth is: Not everybody is designed for white-collar jobs and with Unemployment on the rise, it is time to explore other prospects. For me, self-employment is almost, if not, everything. Apart from the freedom it gives, it brings out the best in you because you would want to work sooooo hard to ensure that your prized 'possession', your business, does not get flushed down the drain. Believe it or YES, you have what it takes. You do not have the capital to kick off? Okay, but have you written a document detailing what you want to do? why not plan out what you would like to do? you never can tell who will be interested in sponsoring it at any given point in time. Do not get caught unprepared.
The time to act is NOW! If on 31st December, 2014, you want to look back at this year, beat your chest, look up and say 'Thank You God for a successful year', you need to start thinking and start acting.
The year is still nascent, so I wish you what you wish and work to achieve for yourself, Happy New Year!
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