Dear destiny friends,
Growing up, I had this feeling that I will be a great person in the society. I nursed the thoughts of being a lawyer, Governor, President, or an influential person in the society. The feeling was so strong that I didn’t really know when it would happen, how it would happen and where it would happen. I just knew it would happen, God willing. Ordinarily, it may appear difficult to accomplish considering my background and trajectory, but one thing was certain, I had a strong belief system. I’m not usually deterred by negative voices and factors that pose challenges to me. I just have the belief that by the special grace of God, everything will work out well.
Norman Vincent Pearle in his book, “The Power of Positive Thinking”, advised us to always think positive. He believed that the height great people were able to attain was because of their belief factors. They were not concerned about the challenges that posed as obstacles, rather, they were concerned with their vision. The belief factor is very important if you want to succeed. The belief factor works with the mindset. How you programme your mind determines how you interpret the signals of opportunities and challenges that come your way. Isn’t it true that success and failure starts from the mind?
Beliefs work in different ways. There are several kinds of beliefs that affect human beings and systems. There are religious beliefs, societal beliefs, organizational beliefs, human beliefs etc. All these beliefs determine a person or organization’s functions. Once the belief changes, the entire system or human being changes.
The belief factor works with the mindset. You attract what you believe. It’s what you believe that will happen to you. For instance, if someone is sick and he or she meets a doctor for treatment. It’s not really the pill or treatment that the patient gets that makes the person feel better, it is the faith the patient has in the pill or treatment. As a matter of fact, the patient already believed that the doctor could heal him/her and that’s why he or she went to the clinic or doctor for treatment. It is the faith or belief that if the doctor gives him/her a pill or treatment, he or she will get better.
There was a story of a sick old woman whose son happened to be a medical doctor. The son gave her a pill, but she refused to take it. Rather, she requested an injection, but the son tried to persuade her to take the pill for her to feel better. All efforts to convince her fell on deaf ears. At a time, the son discovered that his mother’s health was deteriorating, and so decided to put water into a syringe and inject his mother. Guess what? Within two hours the woman’s health improved.
The point here is that the woman already believed it is the injection that will make her feel better. That’s how powerful the mind and belief are. The same story is applicable to everyone. You may be struggling as a student, entrepreneur, politician, or career professional to make an impact, I have good news for you. If only you can believe and have faith, everything will align with you.
This is a practical way the belief factor works. As a leader, to effect a change, your followers must believe in you. If you want to make a great impact either in yourself, business, organization or community, you must be able to work on the mindset of the people.
The belief factor works in alignment with your faith. As mentioned earlier, it is what you believe in that will work for you. If you believe in working for fun or passion, it will work for you. If you believe in luck it works for you. In our contemporary society, it is said that passion doesn’t pay pills. I beg to disagree, your passion can pay the bills if you market your passion to the right audience.
It’s instructive to note that no genuine success was attained without an element of passion. In the same way, no great person became great without being passionate about a cause. So, if you are a singer, creative writer, painter, public speaker, you can still be celebrated if you reach out to the right people. Some scholars have opined that when it comes to career, you have to do what you have to do to make a living, and that entails accepting a job you don’t like just to pay your bills or feed your family. I agree, but while working on the job, spend time developing your craft, which can be your passion, and gradually develop it so that you can retire from your job to it someday.
In conclusion, take time to evaluate what you believe in, and who you believe in, because it is your belief and mindset that will shape your life.
Henry Ukazu writes from New York. He works with the New York City Department of Correction as the Legal Coordinator. He’s a Human Capacity and Mindset coach. He is also a public speaker, youth advocate and creative writer Design Your Destiny and Unleash Your Destiny. He can be reached via info@gloemi.com
