It is quite fascinating to see how people approach problems in life. This often separates ordinary people from extraordinary individuals who achieve significance in their lives. Where others see impenetrable barriers, these individuals see challenges to embrace and obstacles to overcome. Leonardo da Vinci, the Artist, Inventor and Scientist is quoted as saying: “It had long since come to my attention that people of accomplishment rarely sat back and let things happen to them. They went out and happened to things.” To succeed in life, you have to be determined and focused on what you want to achieve. A determined person knows exactly where he or she is on the road to success, knows where he or she wants to go and has developed a strategy of how and when to reach his or her goal.
inspiration with Cynthia C Hakutangwi
Who inspires you?
Because of my own personal background and the challenges that I have had to overcome in in my life journey, I find great inspiration in reading about individuals who maintained a determined spirit beyond horrible tragedies and setbacks. One such individual is Oprah Winfrey. She is one of the most successful and richest people in the world today, but Winfrey didn’t always have it so easy. She grew up in Milwaukee and was repeatedly molested by her cousin, uncle and a family friend. She eventually ran away from home, and at age 14 gave birth to a baby boy who shortly died after. But Winfrey’s tragic past didn’t stop her from becoming the force she is today. She excelled as an honours student in high school, and won an oratory contest which secured her a full scholarship to college. Now the entrepreneur and personality has the admiration of millions and a net worth in excess of $3 billion. The media proprietor, talk show host, actress, producer, and philanthropist did not allow her scarred childhood to stand in the way of her significant pursuits.
Another one of my all-time favourites is Albert Einstein, who completely changed the way we understand the behaviour of things as basic as light, gravity, and time. Einstein did not speak until he was four years old. He didn’t have the best childhood. In fact, many people thought he was just a dud. He never spoke for the first three years of his life, and throughout elementary school, many of his teachers thought he was lazy and wouldn’t make anything of himself. He always received good marks, but his head was in the clouds, conjuring up abstract questions people couldn’t understand. But he kept thinking and, well, he eventually developed the theory of relativity, which many of us still can’t wrap our heads around.
Determination and Africa’s challenges
There is an African Proverb which I share in my book “The Wealthy Diary of African Wisdom.” It says that “If you are building a house and a nail breaks, do you stop building or do you change the nail?” I believe that the power of determination is one of the key differentiators between those who constantly achieve success versus those who give up on their dreams to live comfortably in the valley of mediocrity. When I look around the continent, I sometimes get the feeling that some of my fellow Africans have completely lost hope in their motherland because of the complex challenges of the African narrative. How do we revive hope to rebuild our continent when there are so many broken things around us? Who should fix the brokenness on our continent? If we choose to walk away from facing the dire state of our continent, who do we expect to come and build our beloved motherland?
A call to determined game changers
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There are major phenomena which are profoundly altering the world’s landscape on various interfaces which range from advances in technology, to changing demographics and tastes, and the global recession amongst many others. All these dynamics continue to provide fertile ground for the emergence of new behaviours which demand more innovative ways of doing things and strategies to adapt to and benefit from the changes. In the multi-coloured and multi-layered backdrop of all this, bellows a clarion call for game changers who will not only adapt but possess the strength of character to change the ways things are done. It is against this backdrop that Africa needs game changers to emerge now more than ever. A game changer changes the way that something is done, thought about or made. The thought leaders that Africa needs are people of impact who invest in themselves not out of a selfishness which violates the values of others but rather with the greater perspective of improving their ability to serve, produce and contribute in meaningful ways.
The determination to succeed
To aspire to success, you will also need to understand, either consciously or instinctively, the necessity of having a worthy goal and believing in its eventual realisation. There are thousands of people around who have great talent and ability and yet because they lack the determination to strike out sadly achieve little. There are many well-educated and knowledgeable people, who, because of their lack of vision, will forever occupy lowly positions. The determination to succeed is the factor that distinguishes people who are great achievers from those who are content to stand on the side lines. Not satisfied even with doing their best, they are determined to go a step further to improve their best until they eventually reach the goals they have set. You will be confronted with many challenges and failures as you march to your world of success. What will make a difference in your journey is your determination to succeed. With your determination you will be in position to overcome all challenges
Cynthia Hakutangwi is a communications and personal development consultant, life coach, author and strategist. Looking at improving balance, energy, organisation, health fitness, relationships, focus, faith and happiness? Wholeness Incorporated Coaching offers you strategies and simple steps you can implement today to become a better, more balanced, happier version of yourself. E-mail: [email protected]. Facebook: Wholeness Incorporated.
