Busayo Akanro - Light does not shine in light » Desire

This is my forest….and I am not afraid

bussee — Mon, 13 Sep 2010 11:26:23 +0000

After having an interesting and eventful weekend, I thought to write on something that got quite impressed on my mind. I went to Ibadan, a city in Nigeria from Lagos on Saturday for about 3 meetings. The first being a members meeting for Holidays and Cash members in my team in Ibadan. I went to find out why the business was slowing down in Ibadan and what they needed to know or do if they desired change or financial freedom.

It was quite an interesting meeting and the participants were fired up.

Then we had a prospects’ meeting and afterward in the evening from about 10pm till 6am the next morning, we engaged in a financial intelligence training called BIT (Billionares-In-Training). It was very exciting and the education for the over 40 people in attendance was immense. Each person had something profound that they learnt from the experience of the training.

Actually the training is based on the playing of a financial game called cashflow 101. This game was designed by Robert Kiyosaki and Sharon Lechter co-authors of the best-selling rich dad, poor dad book. In my opinion, everyone should play that game. It’s said that “the more you play, the richer you become”.

Then I left Ibadan at about 7am and took up another journey to Ilorin about 3 hours away without having slept. I had been informed the night before by the bride of the wedding I was attending in Ilorin that it’ll be an honour for the couple if I anchored at their reception. I immediately had cold feet and tried to say no, but she insisted that that will be my wedding gift to them and they didn’t want any other. I had never anchored at a wedding and I didn’t even have time to prepare. I also wasn’t very fluent in my native tongue (Yoruba) and didn’t want to look out of place as I guessed the crowd would be expecting an anchor who could and would speak yoruba fluently.

Well, I anchored the wedding and did my best. I didn’t feel myself though but at least, I dared to try and I just did it. You know, they say, “you’ll miss 100% of the shots you don’t take”.

Anyway, while charging the members of H&C in Ibadan, I told some of their leaders that Ibadan was their city and they needed to possess it and take the major influence as regards H&C before someone else does and they find that they were caught napping. I remembered a movie I watched a few years ago and I related the lessons I learned from the movie to them.

The movie was titled “Apocalypto” and was produced by Mel Gibson. Rudy Youndblood was the lead actor and in the movie was named Jaguar Paw. He according to wikipedia, must escape human sacrifice and rescue his family after the capture and destruction of his village. It was quite a gory but interesting movie. I was held in suspense and hightened anticipation through out the movie.

The scene that got to me was when while running away from his pursuers, Jaguar Paw had to jump down a waterfalls. His pursuers thought he was dead but when he came out of the water on the other side, he suddenly had news for them. He looked up defiantly at them and declared with a loud voice

” I am Jaguar Paw, son of Flint Sky, my father hunted this forest before me. I’m Jaguar Paw. I am a hunter, this is my forest and my sons will hunt it with their sons after I’m gone. Come on! Come on!”.

I broke up in a grin and hurled my fist into the palm of the other hand. “YES”, I shouted, “GET THEM”. My adrenaline was pumping and I felt like jumping into the TV screen to help him. He ended up turning the tables on his pursuers and killing them all save two with weapons that only one familiar with that forest could know about. Here are some lessons I learned.

1. Know your Forest

Had Jaguar paw not been familiar with that part of the forest, he may never have known his forest that well to turn it on his pursuers. He must have gone out to play with his friends most days and even nights in the forest. They must have hidden from, chased, fought and helped each other in the forest. Every one needs to develop an area of competence. Develop your skills in the area you are comfortable with. The area you are comfortable with is your forest and it can be speaking, comedy, fashion, business, strategy, security, software, IT etc…Know it first, recognise it, discover it and know it to the best of your ability.

2. Hunt your Forest

Jaguar Paw was a hunter. He said so himself. He had learnt to wait in patience for prey after having set a trap. He had learnt to run after prey till he caught up with it and killed it. He had learnt to run away from hunters(wild animals) as well. He knew where the snakes where and where the jaguars whre, he knew where the holes were and the posinous animals were. He knew which plants could heal and which ones had a scent. He had hunted his forest so well that he knew it’s strengths and weaknesses and could use them whenever the need to arose.

Are you hunting your forest? Do you know more than average in your area of competence or are you just mediocre? Do you seek knowledge continually by reading and acquiring information. Do you need to go for a course or take a lesson? How well have you exploited your opportunities, strengths etc…

3. Who’s leading you in your Forest

Jaguar Paw’s father taught him to hunt the forest. He showed him the dangers and thought him how to avoid them and use them to his benefit. He showed him the good side as well. He allayed his fears when he got afraid and pumped his confidence when he needed morale. He literally led him by the hand through the school of hunting and he did so well that when he was about to be murdered, he looked at his son as gasped “Don’t be afraid” as if to say, “Today, my lessons will begin to take effect more because now, you are no longer the student but the teacher.

” Who is leading you? who is teaching you? Who are your mentors? Who do you submit to to receive knowledge and/or grace? If you don’t get a leader, you may not survice the forest.

4. Return to your Forest

When Jaguar Paw was released to be used as target practice, he made a run in the direction of his forest. All through the day and night, while he was pursued, he had only one direction in mind – his forest.

When you find yourself adrift of your goals and dreams and destination, please return to your forest by all means. While you are fighting failures and opposition, return to your forest. Your forest is not your comfort zone. It is your base. It’s from where you plan and deploy. It’s your headquarters. It’s your area of core competence. It’s where you are in control. It’s from where you can take bearing and find out what direction and at what angle do you need to go. It’s your focal and locus point. It’s your place of retreat and restrengthening. It’s where God is.

5. Use your Forest

Don’t keep running in fear in your forest. Use your forest to win. Once Jaguar Paw entered into his forest, the game changed. He started to use his knowledge and skills acquired over the years to bring down his adversaries one-by-one. There were things in the forest that he went to get intuitively and found them where he knew they would be. He used his forest and brought down every single adversary.

Use your skills and area of core competence to your advantage. Use them as a base, as a fulcrum or pivot, as a herald. Don’t be afraid in your forest. Take risks and use your forest to win.

6. Have a Plan B in your Forest

Jaguar Paw when the village was attacked earlier in the movie first sought to save his pregnant wife and toddler son by lowering them into a pit hidden somewhere in the forest. He had a plan B which simply stated “If I fail or lose my life, I must make provision for my legacy to live on” The thought of his family trapped in the pit helped to drive him to the point of victory but it was a plan B.

What is your own plan B? What if you don’t survive the forest, how will those who come after you survive? Do you have a plan B? What if your skills and area of core competence don’t give you what you want? what is your plan B?

Remember, “This is your Forest!!!”

GIVER or TAKER; which are you in 2010?

bussee — Fri, 01 Jan 2010 19:12:35 +0000

Hi Everyone, I wish you all a very prosperous new year. I saw a news flash this morning that stated that Americans were not optimistic at all about a good 2010 but I assure you that if you trust in God and do His word, He’ll single you out for outstanding revelations on what to do in a failing world economy that’ll guarantee your immense success this year without a shadow of doubt. I watched a movie in the last few days of 2009 and want to share my thoughts about that movie.

The title of the movie is “Flawless” and I’m sure you may have watched it. The actual plot of the movie had to do with a very senior executive played by Demi Moore who kept getting passed on by the management for promotion in a Diamond producing company and a janitor played by Michael Caine who assumedly wanted to retire rich. Both of them colluded to rob the company of a few pieces of diamonds, at least that was what Lara Quinn (Demi Moore) thought until she found out with shock that every single piece of the diamonds had been stolen – about 2 tonnes of diamonds. The details of the plot I won’t go into now because that isn’t where the major lesson I learnt was.

After the theft had been successfully carried out by the old janitor (Michael Caine), Lara really got jittery and remorseful begging him to please return the diamonds because they were going to be caught by the insurance investigator who seemed to be gaining ground in his investigation especially with his interest in her as a prime suspect becoming more intense. She regularly required to meet with the janitor at different nondescript places to express her fears and to implore him to give up the diamonds but he wouldn’t budge.

Eventually, she determined to find the diamonds where they were stowed and started her own parallel investigation. She finally stumbled upon a clue that led her to the diamonds but before she could alert the company, she was held hostage by the janitor for a few hours until the insurance company paid the sum of $100million to an account the janitor had anonymously demanded they should pay into. While he held her hostage, he asked if she had been thinking about what she was going to do with her own part of the ransom ($10million). ARE YOU GOING TO BE A TAKER OR A GIVER?

The janitor apparently had a grudge to settle with regards to his dead wife and simply wanted to take it out on the insurers who had refused his wife health insurance when she was ill may years ago. The CEO of the insurance company eventually committed suicide which seemed to satisfy the janitor as revenge for what that CEO had done to his wife several years ago. The janitor disappeared before the stash of diamonds were found and was never seen again by anybody.

Lara Quinn didn’t go to prison for helping find the loot and confessing to the conspiracy and the company got back all its diamonds. She retired later to find out shockingly that an account had been opened in her name in an offshore account with a balance of $100million. She then decided to dedicate the next 40 years of her life to ensuring that every single penny of that money was used to help other people around the world either regain their health or find a new reason for living. She paid for organ transplants of different kinds for different poor people all over the world through a foundation she opened; she paid for education for several indigent students and built schools. She kept empowering poor and rather unfortunate people till she had spent every last penny.

40 years later, she felt at peace. “At least and at last”, she told herself, “I have turned a previously criminal and very bad situation into a very beautiful solution”

The Moral:

In 2010, God is going to give you a lot of opportunities and resources; those we plan for and those that happen along our way without our pre-knowledge; those we think are negative and those we are sure are positive; those we imagined and those we didn’t dare imagine; those that are just sufficient, not sufficient and more than sufficient. Let me ask you the same question?

ARE YOU GOING TO BE A GIVER OR A TAKER?

…Ponder on these things. The year will tell.

The Parable of the monkeys

bussee — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 17:08:05 +0000

Hi folks, I know you want to say “where have you been for all these months?” or ” How come you haven’t written a single article in 4 months?” I really don’t know the answer. I must admit quite honestly that even right now I don’t feel like or want to write anything.

It’s not because there aren’t things to write, it’s just because I feel quite unmotivated and unworthy to write them. Anyway, I’m writing now ain’t I? So please just bear with me and read on…this will bless you.

I once heard about the parable of the monkeys. Once upon a time a monkey was placed in a particular cage with a bunch of bananas hanging from the top of the cage. Naturally, the monkey swung up the cage excitedly and reached up for the bananas, he was immediately doused with a jet of cold water from a hose that was aimed at the cage. Immediately, he dived back down to the bottom of the cage. Of course, monkeys don’t give in that easily so he tried again – no one was going to deter him from feasting on the bananas. He swung up again to retrieve the bunch of bananas but as soon as he almost touched it, he got doused with water again. He immediately dived back down looking for the source of his affliction (apes hate water). He couldn’t really see anybody and tried after a few minutes. He got doused again. He tried again and again and each time he got doused again and again. After a few days and many attempts, he stopped trying.

One month after, another monkey was brought into the cage. The monkey saw the bunch of bananas and immediately went for it (Note: The bunch of bananas were changed to fresh ones from time to time). He got the shock of his life as a jet of cold water hit him in the face. He quickly scurried to the bottom of the cage and waited a few minutes for the shock to wear off before trying again. He got the same result and after trying a while and getting drenched, he understood why the first monkey wasn’t as eager as he was to eat “free” bananas hanging at the top of the cage. He also succumbed to fate and stopped trying to get the bananas.

Another month after, a new monkey was introduced into the cage. As custom will have it, he went straight for the bunch of fresh bananas he saw hanging at the top of the cage but the other two monkeys went for it as pulled it down with his legs. They immediately pounced on it and beat it silly and into submission. They did that because they knew he would get sprayed with water and all of them will get wet. They didn’t want to get wet and they knew that he wont get the bananas anyway so they took steps to ensure it didn’t happen. After a while of trying and getting beaten, the monkey gave up trying. One month went by and another monkey was introduced into the cage. He suffered the same fate as the 3rd monkey only that the 3rd monkey was involved in beating him up and keeping him from getting the bunch of bananas.

After a few weeks, the first two monkeys were taken out of the cage. Now of the two monkeys remaining in the cage, none of them actually had water sprayed on them for reaching for the bananas. They were only restrained with pain by the first two monkeys.

Yet another month went by and another monkey was introduced into the cage. He immediately was giving the customary beating treatment when he tried to get the bunch of bananas. After trying a while and getting beat a few times, he suddenly blurted

“Why are you monkeys beating me and holding me back?”

The other monkeys looked at themselves blankly and said

“We don’t know, we don’t know why we are beating you? We were beating as well when we came and tried to reach for the bunch so we just took on the custom of beating every other monkey who tried to reach for the bananas”.

How many of us are like that? We don’t why we are where we are or why we are doing what we are doing. We just know that that is how it should be done. Who told you that? Who told you that you must have only one stream of income? Who told you that you can not live above sin? Who told you that you can’t own your business? Who told you that you can not be financially free?

We were mostly brought up hearing our parents and environment say,

“Get a good education, get a good job thereafter, work all your life, retire broke and busted with a good pension and die!”

What a big lie!

You are like the monkeys!

Why can’t you dare the jet of water and pull out all stops to get the bananas!

What is your own excuse? Are you pulling others down who are trying to get the bananas?

Have you been enslaved by the system?

Do you merely wish freedom or do you DESIRE it?

Listen!!! those who have tried and failed have been taken out of the cage!

Ask yourselves what they did and how you can do it better?

Perhaps, if the three remaining monkeys planned to go for the bananas together the focus of the water spray would be divided and one of them would have been able to get the bunch.

Instead of proliferating negativity and pessimism, think of another way to achieve your dream and go for it.

LIFE DOES NOT GIVE YOU WHAT YOU DESERVE, IT GIVES YOU WHAT YOU DEMAND.

The price of freedom

bussee — Thu, 28 May 2009 17:23:02 +0000

I once read about a story that talked about freedom. Once upon a time, some circus workers captured a baby elephant from its family in the amazon jungle of South America. This elephant was very aggressive and violent towards its captors. It resented deeply its forced seperation from its mother and the rest of its family. It fought its captors bravely but unsuccessfully and they were able to subdue it a little, bind its legs and carry it on a horse drawn cart to the circus camp.

On getting to the circus camp, they tied up the elephant to an iron stake in driven deep into the ground. The elephant tried time after time to get away from his captors but each time he tried, when he had stretched the chain fully, he got stopped by the chain and had to return back to the stake. He kept on doing this for days and after a while resigned to fate that he could never be free from bondage.

One day after many months, one of his captors came and removed the chain from his ankle and literally set him free. The elephant simply walked to the same point at which the chain gets fully stretched and stopped. After a while, he returned to sit by the stake. Day after day, the elephant performed the same ritual, never stepping beyond the point he had been unable to cross when he was bound.

The elephant though hav’n been set free in reality was still bound in his mind and as a result could not live in the reality of his freedom.
The state of the elephant is one I like to define as being delivered but not being free.

Many people are like the elephant in this story. They have shut down their minds to freedom so much that in the moment of their deliverance, they are not aware of the consequent freedom that attends it. Deliverance is many times an external activity but freedom must be internal.
People’s minds are bound to the prevailing circumstances in the environment. I just got into Ado-Ekiti, the capital of Ekiti state with a great opportunity. I really expected to be greeted with enthusiasm and drive, rather I was met with skepticism and excuses. I almost got discouraged but quickly recognised the fact the deliverance vs. freedom issue springing to the fore.

People don’t want to fail forward. They don’t want to try something that looks like something they have failed at before. It is no wonder that Nigerians support one club in England this season and another in Spain next season and another in England next season and so on….People are so used to rushing after the winning team. They don’t understand the importance of building a winning team.

I couldn’t help but wonder, “what will it take me to drive the elephant beyond the boundary of his bondage in his mind?”. “what do I need to do to open the eyes of his mind?”

People have one negative thing or the other to say about network marketing and I ask myself.

“would people rather stay on a job, work their lives out, hate their bosses and their organisations, earn less than they desire, deprive their family of necessarily time and still get stuck int he rat race simply because they are unwilling to bolster up courage and write their own stories?”

“If network marketing especially those with models by which you can earn passive income for the rest of your life isn’t the fairest type of marketing inthe world, then tell me is it conventional marketing that only rewards the direct salesman and not the chain of advertisers, referrers or indirect marketers?”

“Why are people hypocritically behaving as if there’s one particular thing they are passionate about, the absence of which they’d rather die when it’s obvious that all they truly wish for is freedom (financial and otherwise)?”.

“If only wishes were horses, even beggars will ride”.

“The proof of desire is pursuit”.

Apparently, loads of people around here are not desirous of freedom, they only wish it, otherwise, they’ll pursue it with all they’ve got.
Deliverance is not equivalent to freedom until one gets involved in making it so.

Deliverance is to wishing what desire and pursuit are to freedom.
You may have been delivered, but are you free?

April Fool

bussee — Fri, 03 Apr 2009 08:58:18 +0000

It seems like yesterday when we all shouted “Happy New Year!!!” It was the dawn of 2009. There were lots of promises and prophesies. My own church had a word that read like this ”2009: My year of signs, wonders, miracles and positive change.” Everyone was in high spirits. We all believed that even though the shadow of the economic recession was looming large over things generally, respite would surely break forth in 2009.

In line with this, many of us wrote down goals, some as usual resolutions whih they have long since broken. We wrote down goals that seemed harder to achieve than dry bones becoming a live army in the valley of the dead. We were consoled by the air of possibilities and optimism. Now, three months down the line. Exactly a quarter of the year gone, most of us have already forgotten our goals. Some of us don’t even know where we wrote them down, not to mention what they are.

What we held on to as possibilities are fast mading in our imaginations as possibilities. We are beginning to become “reasonable” and to settle for whatever comes our way. Those who thought to strike out in one business or the other are balking away. Those who had on their list a new language to learn or skill to develop or degree to acquire or to apply for are giving the current economic landslide as an excuse not to do it again.

Many are beginning to look at and consider the wind. Many have forgotten that they were actually living by faith and hope and are beginning to look at the boisterousness of the sea and the waves thereby sinking into the sea and drowing. We have quickly forgotten that the proof of pursuit is “Desire”. We merely wished for the things we wrote down and seemingly trusted God for.

For if wishes were horses, even beggars will ride. Activity they say is not rewarded, only results are. Therefore, we who have seen the 1st of April should say excitedly to ourselves “Happy New Quarter”. We should pick up our goal list and get re-energised to accomplish all we have set to do. Only those who have wasted the first 3 months and are not taking stock on their achievements or repositioning to perform better are truly “April Fools”.

Life only gives you what you demand and not what you wish, ask or deserve. If you haven’t spoken to that babe, come on speak to her and let her know you want to marry her. What’s the worst that can happen? She says “No”,you cry a bit and you move on..LOL.

How sad will it be if on the first of July, you discover that not only did you ignore the April fool’s warning, you inadvertently became a July fool as well. I wish you all the best in the new quarter guys and please “GO OUT THERE AND LIVE YOUR LIFE”. “CREATE YOUR OWN FUTURE” and make yourself and generations born and unborn in your genealogy proud of you.