AN ADDRESS TO THE READER
This book was written primarily to share my experiences and challenges with you intimately for your edification and exhortation. For most people, in these days of economic recession there is a thin line between suicide and success. Therefore, to overcome the suicide trap, you must become enthusiastic about life. You must take the bull by the horns. You must wake up and fight like the man you are. You must fight for your life. Don’t let the world defeat you with economic jargons of recession and depression. You are born to rule and win in this life. Never! Never! Give up. Most people are really trying to get by; they’re not living the life. They’re living their life by the bootstrap. They are barely hanging on to life, just so that they can exist. They are not choosing the life that they dreamed of. My friend, don’t be most people. Don’t let suicidal thoughts haunt you “down to the ground”.
Do you know that you’re a superstar? Do you know that there is practically nothing that you cannot do if you set your mind to it? If only you knew how brilliant and strong you are, you will be amazed. Do you know that if you give the world your challenge, your idea, your dream, the world will make it happen for you? By now, I believe you may be wondering why I’m speaking to you this way. Well, I was just like you some years back. I was jobless, broke, penniless, hopeless and ignorant. In fact, I was confused and frustrated and dejected and rejected. I had no one to call my own, I had no friend, and I was born and raised as an orphan. And I too contemplated suicide. I just wanted to end it all. I gave up on life. I became despondent and fell into a trance occasionally. I became absent minded. But I thank God who brought me back to life. Oh! Yes, I was dead alive. I was a walking dead.
However, as an introvert, I stumbled into the book of meditation, the Holy bible. I read it like a novel. I read it absent mindedly. And then I also stumbled into the book titled “Think and grow Rich” by the famous author Napoleon Hill. As I read these two books side by side, my life started taking shape. My life started having meaning. And by His grace, I am who I am today; an accomplished Author, a Christian faithful, a Mentor, Coach and a seasoned Teacher. Of course, I am a seasoned Teacher.
Teaching is the best profession in the world. A teacher is a Doctor, Engineer, Architect, Lawyer, Philosopher, Scientist, Professor, Coach and a Leader. A teacher is an Angel; He is a saint of God. He is the mouthpiece of Jehovah Jireh. A Teacher is the peoples Champion. He is a hero. He is the voice for the voiceless. In fact, I sincerely advise you that if all else fail, you should be a Teacher. You can share your experience of failure with the world. You can inspire the world with your story about failure. Tell the world about your frustration, your suicidal tendencies; tell the world about your strength and weaknesses. Tell the world about your moments of ignorance and attempts at committing suicide. Allow yourself to hope, to dream, to believe, to imagine, and to trust again. Don’t let the bad memories of the past stop you from having a good life. If today you decide what you are going to do, you can make it happen. Always believe in yourself.
Let me shock you a little, the world prefers your authentic “bullshit” story to anything else in the world. The world is prepared to pay so much for your authentic “bullshit” story and make it a blockbuster to inspire the lily livered faint- hearted, hopeless people of the world. The world is not really interested in tales by moonlight or cock and bull stories if you don’t mind. The world right now relishes in authentic and real life inspiring stories. Do you remember the film Rocky II, starring Sylvester Stallone? Go watch it. The amazing success story of Sylvester Stallone is as intriguing as it is interesting. The story is told of how Sylvester Stallone grew from grass to grace, from joblessness to fulfillment and from obscurity to stardom, fame and Glory.
Well, my friend, like people say, “talk is cheap.” That’s why you should remember that adage that says, “Action speaks louder than words.” Do you know that all the knowledge we have in this world will amount to nothing if we fail to take action. Taking action on what we believe is the key to outstanding and spectacular success. If you determine today to take action on that project or dream that you have been thinking of lately, you too can rise from obscurity to stardom like Sylvester Stallone. I wish you Good luck. Always remember to match your knowledge with action, because what you know means nothing unless you go to work. As the Philosophers have put it, “A man is a product of his thoughts, what he thinks, he becomes.’’ I hope that one day you’ll say that enough is enough and you will just decide to move up higher to the next level of your life and blow the world away with your potential. Enough of playing the victim role, you must flip the switch to play the role of a victor. Don’t pray for an easy life. Don’t go for quick fixes. Pray for the strength to deal with any challenge that comes your way. You must endeavor to minimize distractions to reduce stress. You must learn to focus on your goals and effortlessly fulfill your destiny. You must deliberately live your life so that your epitaph would read, No regrets. You only live once. And if you live right, once is enough. Life is a game. Play to win. Remember, ambition is the first step to success. The second is action. The third is taking risk. No matter how you feel, you need to get up and dress up and just show up. This is because fortune favors the brave.
The best way to live is to become the best version of you. The best way to live is to follow your virtues. The best way to live is to have self-control. God wants you to become the best version of yourself. You can live your life to the fullest by following the best version of yourself. You must not die young. You must not die a premature, untimely death. There is nothing in the world that you can’t make it through. Stop stumbling around like a wasted zombie. You can actually do better than you are presently. Your life is worth more than just to graduate, work, pay bills, just retire and die. Don’t let your learning lead to knowledge, you will become a fool. Let your learning lead to action so that you can become wealthy.
In most cases, we’re the victims of the consequences of our inaction and indolence. There is a saying that ‘Age Wrinkles the body, but quitting wrinkles the soul.’ There can be miracles when you believe. Who knows what miracle you can achieve, only believe. You have influence. You can truly influence events in the universe to favor you. Never give up. You’ll find it. It’s close. So close. Never! Never! Never! Give up. Keep moving. Keep doing it. Never look back. Keep looking forward. Are you feeling weak? Are you getting tired? Are you afraid? I urge you to look up and upward, look up to God and He will give you the strength and courage you require to win. Stop thinking too much. It’s alright not to know the answers. They will come to you when you least expect it.
There may be a thousand reasons for you to give up. But I encourage you to remain patient. Only believe that delay is not a denial. You must still believe in your dreams, in your plans. You are never too young or old to chase your dream. How you feel, how you live, and what you want out of life is up to you. Everything takes time. Try to do the best you can to be a better man. Remember life still goes on even when we quit. Why worry? There will be laughter after pain. There will be sunshine after rain. Things will never remain the same. So why worry now. Please, wipe away those tears. Don’t let life make you bitter. Don’t let people make you sad. Don’t let life make you feel frustrated and flustered. How else can I tell you that life is full of surprises? Life is what happens when you are searching for your dream. When you’re searching for success, life happens pretty quickly. You’ll be surprised if only you can just try one more time.
So don’t get lost in horrible thoughts. Stop choking on your thoughts. Stop drowning and bleeding in your thoughts; your life has a purpose. And stop thinking of people who hate you. I know that there’s so much you’re going through. I know you’re bleeding and you have stopped believing. You are not alone. Everything happens for a reason. Right now, I know that you’re restless. But as you step out in faith, my prayer for you is that fear and distraction will not stop you. I pray that God will guide you to follow who you are. You must believe in your God-given potentials and follow who you are. I want to let you know that it’s not all that bad. Please let me bring you out of darkness of despair and despondency into the light of hope, faith and victory. Have a fighting spirit and get back into the ring and fight for your life. You are called to live a life of significance. You are a beautiful masterpiece. You are created to do extraordinary things by God. Let go and let God. Stop living a life of loneliness, stress and drug addiction. Put your faith in God and stop living a life of fear and failure. Unlock your potentials and talents now and begin to live the life of your dreams.
The trouble with most people is that they are not patient with themselves, but they are patient with other people. According to a renowned man of God, Pastor W.F. Kumuyi, “The world is accustomed to haste. Everyone prefers to travel on the fast lane, own fast cars, fast telephony, fast internet connections, and eat fast foods.” With the world wired together by awesome Communication Technology into one small global village, many business and lifestyle decisions can be made in no time by the touch of a gadget. The world is filled with the plague of impatience from coast to coast. And sadly, most people have contracted this syndrome and have been stung by the haste bug. Please always be reminded that anything worthwhile takes time to manifest, takes time to grow and flourish. It is often said that “an impatient man, is like a car without brakes.” An impatient man is an accident in progress. Therefore, never be so busy making a living that you forget to make a life. According to Bishop T.D Jakes, “you can sit there and die, or you can do whatever it takes to get out of your circumstances.”