The 26 Acts of Champions

THE 26 ACTS OF CHAMPIONS

Champions are not just one-time winners of golden trophies; as that can be achieved through a combination of luck and other favourable factors. The champions we are talking about here are those who have conquered and keep conquering their worlds in spite of hurdles and challenges on their ways. They have learnt how to turn stumbling blocks to stepping stones, that is why to them, failure is not final. These are true champions! We now want to look at those qualities they possess that keep them going and winning in life in spite of all odds- what is termed the 26 acts of champions, coined from the 26 letters of the English Alphabet:

Attitude: Champions possess a high level of positive attitude that keeps them thinking and talking positively, irrespective of the seeming challenges on their ways. And that’s exactly what helps them to conquer at last.

Belief: Champions have got this self belief in their naturally-endowed ability to get to the top, that they don’t need any external motivation to keep them going.

Courage: Champions are so courageous that they never consider any mountain too high to climb, or any ‘Goliath’ too strong to conquer. No challenge cows them; they fear no fear.

Discipline: Champions possess self discipline. They train their minds, spirits and flesh to act right, and never to shift focus. They understand quite well that the moment a man loses self discipline and control; he has lost control of every other thing. Hence, they try to control their lives first, before seeking to control the circumstances that surround their lives.

Enthusiasm: Champions are not cold-footed optimists, who only possess positive confession with no positive action. They are rather enthusiastic and committed folks who never hesitate to run with the vision, the moment they catch it.

Focus: The acronym of that word, FOCUS is, ‘Follow One Course Until Success’, and that’s exactly what champions do. They are neither distracted nor sidetracked.  They understand where they are going, and keep moving until they reach their target.

Gratitude: Champions are not ingrates. While they don’t necessarily depend on others to get them to the top; they recognise and appreciate every input of others in their lives. No true champion goes about saying, ‘I am a self-made man’, even when that might be the case.

Humility: Humility is a law to every true champion. They understand the principle of humility for greatness. Hence, they remain teachable and ever humble, in spite of what they have already achieved.

Integrity: To champions, ‘your personal image is your worth’, and they do everything possible to protect their image in a positive way so as to remain relevant and revered. That’s why they are more interested in integrity than influence.

Justice: True champions believe in justice and fair play, both for themselves and for others. This is because they believe in a merit system of reward. They are not interested in receiving winners’ medal when they lose. For them, let the winner takes the medal; tomorrow is another day!

Knowledge: Champions pursue knowledge like none other. They work towards self development. They keep learning and improving until they become perfect in their game.

Leadership: Champions believe in the leadership principle of going and showing the way. They are not army commanders that sit at home cruising life, while others are at the battle front.

Maturity: Champions are so matured in mind that they don’t settle for temporary gains on the expense of a brighter future. They don’t believe in cheap shortcuts.

No-nonsense character: True champions are not frivolous; they have got no time waste in unnecessary ventures or kids’ play. They take every game of their lives serious, as their goal is not just to go through life, but to win through life.

Optimism: True champions are upbeat, even when there are signs of failure all around them. They keep on hoping and believing that things would turn out good for them, in spite of initial setbacks. That’s why they sometimes win even at the nick of time.

Purpose: Champions are purposeful persons- they know and understand their callings, assignment and goals. They live a purposeful life- a life with direction and target, not the typical round-the-robin life of the average persons.

Quality: Champions prefer quality to quantity in all they do. If it would take a champion, decades to produce a quality work, he would rather endure those years, rather than coming up with shabby work in a month’s time.

Responsibility: Champions never shy away from claiming responsibility of every of their actions and inactions. They boldly admit their mistakes, and apologise where necessary, while working out improvements. But, to hide under the ‘excuse and blame’ blanket, never!

Sacrifice: The game of life is well played in the court of sacrifice, and champions understand this. So, it is never difficult for a champion to make sacrifice of the things that temporarily appeal to them, just to achieve what they need in the long run.

Time-consciousness: Only fools and losers in life toy with their time; champions never do. They know too well that the greatest resource available to man is time; and that a time wasted could mean a life wasted. Hence, they value and employ their time judiciously to achieve meaningful result.

Unconquerable spirit: Champions are not those who never fail; they are only the people who never quit, in spite of repeated failures. Every other thing around him may break down, but not the spirit of a champion. It remains so unconquerable that when you think he is about giving up, he rises to continue his race.

Vision: True champions possess an eagle eye. They are so visionary that they see the future before others. This puts them on edge over their rivals and mates.

Work: Champions are industrious people. They never believe in mother luck smiling at a lazy man; and the kind breeze carrying him to the top. For them, getting to the top is not by chance, but by choice- of industry and hard work. In fact, true champions hate cheap success. They want to work their way to the top. No idle moment.

Xcellence: You won’t see any champion in a ‘mediocre college’, or in ‘average university’. In all they do, they go for the best; they pursue excellence, and that is the only thing that satisfies them-excellent achievement.

Youthfulness: No age is too old for champions to produce quality results. They might be old in the skin, but not at heart or in the mind. While some lazy young men at early thirties might be claiming it’s too late to enrol for university degree, champions at 80 are just doing exactly that-filling forms for admission.

Zeal: True champions are committed and zealous. They give all they’ve got to achieve a desired result. No wonder they remain at the top!

Also read 15 Things Mentally-Strong People Never Do 

Understanding The 4 ‘FILE’ Principles Of Successful Leadership

Leadership is not a child’s play; it is not for the mentally weak; it is not for the cowardly men and women. It is for real men and women who knows the way, ready to go the way; show the way as well as lead the way with their team. This brings us to one of the most effective principles of successful leadership- the ‘FILE’ principle.

As the name implies, leaders at all levels, and in every area of human endeavour, be it secular or spiritual, are supposed to be administrators who knows the importance of keeping file in their offices. The ‘FILE’ principle of leadership hence, is simply a 4-way mandate for every success-minded leader of all climes and cultures, formed from each of the four letters that make up the word, FILE:

Follow: Every success-minded leader has got to be a true follower. No one succeeds as a leader, who has no leader over him. Having a leader over one, in this case, does not necessarily mean having a boss over you. It simply means those you’re learning from- men and women who have achieved something great in your areas of interest, those whose commitments for higher values challenge you for higher aspirations. In this case, the success-minded leader is teachable, ready to learn more, never settled for a low or average living. That is the leader that succeeds.

Initiate: Great leaders are not conventional. They seek for new ways to do old things or altogether come up with new inventions in their fields. This is the quality that keeps them relevant at all times, and in every place. It is this same quality that helps them beat off competitions as they are always ahead of their competitors as well as above their subordinates.

Lead: Success-minded and effective leaders are of course, leaders and not merely bosses. A boss commands his subordinates around with ‘dos’ and ‘donts’ instructions, while doing virtually nothing but enjoy the executive ‘cake’. Conversely, true leaders lead the way. They have an ‘above average’ knowledge of their executive functions and the business demands, and are the ones to mobilize others to achieve organizational goals, while showing them exactly how to do it. Because of their exemplary quality, subordinates find it easy to follow such a leader, thereby making his work easier.

Educate: Success-minded leaders are so concerned about continuity and longevity of their organization, that one legacy they never forget to leave behind is the legacy of building a formidable and effective team who would fittingly carry on from they stop, even after they are no longer around. Hence, they educate those under them constantly with relevant training tools, so that they would be perfect replacement to carry on. To them, what boss-like leaders call subordinates, they call co-leaders, and the same they practice.

10 Practical Tips For Raising Loyal Kids

10 PRACTICAL TIPS FOR RAISING LOYAL KIDS

It is baffling today to observe the high percentage of kids going wayward, even under the nose of their parents. We may be quick to attribute this negative trend to the influence of the high-tech environment where these kids are being brought up, with its attendant wave of moral decadence and violent crimes. However, it is worthy of note to say that the sheer irresponsibility of many parents today is the major cause of kids’ waywardness. If parents play their own game very well, it is obvious they would succeed in eliminating or, at worst minimising the tendency of their kids going out of hand. Hence, raising loyal kids is possible and achievable if parents can follow through the following practical tips:

1.     Show your kids good moral examples: It is an unarguable truth that kids learn more from what they see than what they hear. In the same vein, they learn more by practical examples set by those who supposed to be their parents and teachers, than they learn by conventional rules and regulations. The moment a parent could convince his kids that he is going in the way he is instructing them to go, through a practical, exemplary life, it becomes easy to get the kids to be loyal.

2.     Discipline them sharply, when necessary: Some jelly-fish parents spoil their kids in the name of loving and caring for them, by not making use of the ‘rod’ when necessary. Some kids are so stubborn and incorrigible that they don’t need a kid’s glove to get something good from them. Hence, the need to apply discipline, not as a habit, but as a necessity would help every parent raise a loyal kid from a near-wayward one.

3.     Correct them with a parental love: If only parents would understand the difference between cruelty and correction, it would go a long way to help them raise loyal kids. Kids are bound to make mistakes, even costly and grievous ones; and at such a time, a real parent is expected to correct; but how? Let it be registered in the tender heart of the child that it is out of interest and concern for his good that dad or mum spanks him/her. In certain cases, parents should clearly communicate it to kids on why they are punished so that the kids would see it as a correction and not as a cruel treatment from a monster parent. That helps the kids grow doing right and remaining loyal.

4.     Reward them when they do well: That is striking a right balance. Your kids should not know you only in correcting wrongs; they should as well know you in commending rights. This is one thing every parent must do to raise loyal kids- see the good side of your kids at one time or the other, and reward them in that area appropriately. This would make disciplining them when they go astray, easy for you and them. With that alone, you don’t need a special tutorial to teach them that in life, good should be praised as a virtue, while evil punished as a vice. And then watch them grow being loyal not only to you, but to the law of the land.

5.     Show interest in what interests them: You can’t win the hearts of your kids until you show interest in what interests them. The moment a child notices that you don’t listen to his stories neither pay attention to his complaints nor share in his moment of joy and ecstasy, vengeance would build up in the child’s heart, and the next would be to flout every instruction you issue to him, just to get at you. But, when you show interest in their interests, helping to point out some negative aspects of their interests that must be jettisoned, the kids would always look up to you for direction.

6.     Give them attention: Attention here is not necessarily money or any kind of material gift. It is time. Create time for your kids; they want to feel that they’ve got a dad in you. If you make yourself a hit-and-run father, they would simply see you as a figure head, who is not worth their loyal submission. At such a time, they cease to take instructions from you, with the feeling that, ‘after all, he doesn’t even know and understand what we are going through’. Another way to give attention to your kids is giving considerations to their preferences at times. Don’t always wave their preferences away as childish. You might even ask them at one time or the other to choose the next meal for the family. That makes the kids to feel on top of the world; they feel they belong to the family and would rather do everything possible to make sure the family remains strong, including being loyal to their parents.

7.     Never show favouritism: There is no doubt that parents could have special interest in a particular child among the rest of the children, either due to the personality or performance of the child. But, the injunction is, ‘never show it’! if you do, you will not only divide your family, you will as well create a big problem for the favoured child, and end up raising a disgruntled and disloyal kids that would set you on the run in the future. Let every of your kids feel equally loved and cared for as others. Don’t wait until some of your kids start accusing you that whenever this other kid offends, you never take up the ‘rod’, but when it is others who offend, you remember discipline. Whenever things get to this point in the family circle, the kids are no longer interested to please you. In fact, it would be to their delight to break family rules, and then prepare for your ‘rod’.

8.     Never lie to your kids: Not even in making appeasing promises. Do your utmost as a parent to keep to your words; and when circumstances make it impossible to fulfil your promises to them, try to explain the details to them. Never assume they are kids; they would not understand or care about your tricks. If you keep being dishonest to your kids, it won’t take time before they imbibe it as a way of life. And be sure that when they do, they would beat you in that game. And the consequence would be the raising of criminally-minded and wayward kids.

9.     Never insult your spouse before them: How many shameless parents do this often, and still wonder why their kids are wayward! Whenever couples abuse each other before their kids, the kids feel that their parents are not matured enough to control themselves; and so should have no moral right to control them. You’re bound to lose them at such. Besides, it disintegrates the children psychologically as their world seems broken down. As they lose that inner peace, which an orderly home offers, they begin to seek for false peace in dangerous lifestyles such as prostitution, drug addiction and the likes. In fact, many kids in such cases end up becoming deviants of the society.

10.                        Give them valuable information in all areas: The rule here is, ‘if the kids must learn it, let them learn it from you first’! But here is where many over-protective parents fail. They hide some valuable information from their kids thinking they are helping them to stay clear of ‘danger’. For instance, it is expected of parents, especially mothers to guide their female children on the area of sex and womanhood, the moment they near puberty, so that they would not fall into the wrong hands. Be the first to teach your kids what you are sure they would learn in the course of time; and then show them the way to walk out of any possible danger posed by such knowledge. This is what makes your kids to respect you as a real and qualified parent, who has got the right to demand their loyalty.

It doesn’t take a rocket science to raise loyal kids even in this dirty and crooked age; all it takes is a quality commitment to the above rules, and many others that could be of help.

15 Things Mentally-Strong People Never Do

The strongest people on earth are not the physically- strong, but the mentally strong people. They have such a great positive mental attitude that enables them to keep moving even when there are supposedly clear reasons why they should go back. They believe that ‘tough times never last, but tough people do’, in the words of Dr Robert Schuller.

Meanwhile, as against a popular opinion, these set of great minds are known for what they do not practice, rather than what they practice. For them, there are 15 of those things they never practise. Let’s go:

1. Waste time feeling sorry for themselves: That is the last thing they do-self pity. They posses such a strong positive attitude that they believe that ‘even though you fall, you will rise again; though you’re sick, you shall be healed; though you’re rejected and jeered today, you shall be accepted and cheered tomorrow; though you were poor, you shall become rich; though you were nearly a dead man, after all, you shall live again: for after all these Job lived’ (Brochisabez). To them, all is well; the future is secured.

2.     2.Give away power: The mentally-strong people never surrender their power in any compromised or coaxed deal. They do not sacrifice the brighter tomorrow on the altar of a ‘begging’ today. They never surrender power either to friends or foes, forces or fantasies. They understand the importance of holding on.

3.     3.Shy away from necessary change: They are not the overtly rigid-principled and conventional-minded persons who loath change like leprosy. They understand when change is necessary, and follow the path of least resistance to make those necessary changes in their lives and situations. To them, the world is changing, why not you?

4.     4.Waste energy on things they cannot control: Mentally-strong people never employ their brain and mind power on self-destructive activities like worry and anxiety over situations they could not control. They are rather creative; thinking of the best solutions to solve their problems and that of others, where need be.

5.     5.Worry about pleasing others: Never! They are not popular-opinionated persons, who go about looking for a pat on the back from every body. They take a step; make a decision they feel is right and necessary at any point in time, without minding whose ox is gored.

6.     6.Fear taking calculated risks: The jelly fish risk- averse fellows of this world would never take a risk, in spite of its potential returns. But that is not the mentally strong people. They understand that life itself is risk, and so takes the bull by the horn whenever such opportunity comes up to take a returnable risks. And even if the game turns bad, they beat their chest and forge ahead; not crying over spilled milk, hoping tomorrow would be a good day. They have learnt the lesson on how best to do it, and that’s enough.

7.     7.Dwell on the past: The mentally-strong persons are progressive-minded people. They never dwell on the past, especially the ugly past of failures and adversity. They find it difficult keeping an archive of past events, as they feel that it portrays a backward mentality.

8.     8.Make the same mistake repeatedly: While they may have fallen over and over again, mentally-strong people easily learn from their mistakes and move on to correct it. They don’t back out from trying new things even in areas they’ve fallen before, but be sure they won’t repeat their mistakes. That is what makes them champions- never quit, learn!

9.    9.Give up after initial failure: Champions never do either. To these great minds, failure is not final. To them, stumbling block is a stepping stone to success. Hence, they neither fear failure nor the tendency of failing again. They learn as they fail, until they perfect.

110. Resent other people’s success: Mentally-strong people have no inferiority complex. They believe that they are embodiments of greatness, ready to explode. Hence, there is no room for resenting others’ success, or being jealous over it. They respect others and appreciate what they have achieved too.

111. Fear ‘alone time’: ‘Alone time’ is the time when friends and families seem to desert us, leaving us to carry our crosses alone. It is at such a time, many poor-minded fellows usually begin to have resentment against God and man, and at worst, contemplate suicide with a line of ‘nobody cares for me; I’m gone’! But the mentally-strong persons at such a time, gets stronger. For them, it is a season of preparation for greatness- it does not scare them.

112.Feel the world owe them anything: They never feel that way. They believe in self effort. They believe we all need to make contributions to our society general wellbeing. When those who are supposedly in position of helping them, fails in that responsibility, they don’t show aggression or malice over that. They easily acknowledge that the neighbour next door does not actually owe them anything. They put more of their confidence and hope in God.

113.Keep unforgiving spirit: The mentally strong people are so matured in mind as to understand the principle of releasing others to release one. They easily forgive and forbear offenders, not just for the sake of the offender, but for their own sakes, so that they can move on without distractions.

114.Feel insecure over a perceived rival: Inferior men are not secured. They are even afraid of their shadows, let alone a perceived rival. Then in other to keep what they feel belong to them, they seek for ways to run others down as well as cut them down. This is what the mentally strong people never do. To them, life is not a competition, but a community where every person is expected to contribute his own quota for general well-being. So what is the fuss about others’ achievement!

115.Expect immediate results: The mentally strong people believe in hardwork and legitimate means of earning a living. They never go for compromised short cuts to achieve immediate success that might taste bitter tomorrow. They understand that it takes quality time and commitment to achieve true success. They focus in achieving an enduring result that guarantees a bright and beautiful future for themselves and others. They are not in a hurry to get up there, being assured they would definitely get them.