CPM FRESH MANNA DAILY DEVOTIONAL GUIDE - SUNDAY 9TH MAY, 2021

 INTEGRITY

 AUTHOR:

REV. DR. O. EZEKIEL & REV. DR. M. EZEKIEL

 JUGES 1:22-26 

22 And the house of Joseph, they also went up against Bethel: and the LORD was with them. 23 And the house of Joseph sent to descry Bethel. (Now the name of the city before was Luz.) 24 And the spies saw a man come forth out of the city, and they said unto him, Shew us, we pray thee, the entrance into the city, and we will shew thee mercy. 25 And when he shewed them the entrance into the city, they smote the city with the edge of the sword; but they let go the man and all his family. 26 And the man went into the land of the Hittites, and built a city, and called the name thereof Luz: which is the name thereof unto this day.

MEDITATION SCRIPTURE:

“So he showed them the entrance into the city, and they put the city to the sword but spared the man and his whole family”. (Judge. 1:25)

Integrity is defined as conduct that conforms to an accepted standard of right and wrong. It is firm adherence to a code, especially moral values. Recently, I read the story of a village girl who was born out of wedlock. Her mother abandoned her with her aged grandmother and moved on with her life. In the village the little girl struggled to survive with her sick grandmother until a distant relation came with his wife to pick her as a maid. Her grandmother was not willing to release her without a promise of a better life and future. She gave the couple the condition that the little girl must be well cared for and sent to school to secure a future for herself. This couple agreed to this arrangement and took the little girl to the city where they lived. In their house, this girl was turned into a slave. She did all the house chores with little or nothing to eat. One of the days when the lady of the house was giving her the beating of her life, because she stole and ate some rice from the pot, since she was starved as a punishment the previously day. She reminded her of her miserable background and told her that they only promised her grandmother that they would send her to school because that was what the woman wanted to hear. In reality, they had no intention of fulfilling their promise. Integrity is doing as you have said no matter who is involved. While reputation is the image you have built for yourself; how men see you, integrity is the real person you are before God.

TURNING POINT:

While reputation is the image you have built for yourself; how men see you, integrity is the real person you are before God.

PRAYER: 

Lord, make me a person of integrity.

BIBLE IN A YEAR:

1KNG.10,11; Lk24:1-35

DEVELOPMENT IN THE 21ST CENTURY: A FILM AND BROADCAST PERSPECTIVE

 

INTRODUCTION

 James Deane (2004) quoted Fraser and Villet (1994) in his article, The context of communication for development, “…..if development can be seen as a fabric woven out of the activities of millions of people, communication represents the essential thread that binds them together.” The level and degree to which a community evolves depends on how effectively the authorities and their agencies utilize communication.

The 21^st century witnessed a supersonic wave of development globally. From the analogue to the digital way of transmitting messages. The information superhighway of transmitting mass media messages has changed the way the mass media operates.  Alan B. Albarran, wrote, "The first decade of the 21st century has been unique in terms of its impact on the media and communication industries.”

Youell and Downey in their article Communication in a new world order stated that "Business is changing course. It will take time, but the transformation has already begun. The train has left the station." Technological innovation is rapidly transforming mass media operations , particularly in 21st-century film and broadcast output. In this paper, we shall be exploring different aspects of film and broadcast industries and their role in the development of society.

From the rapid rise and fall of the dot-com era to a global economic recession impacting virtually every segment of business operation, along with the advent of converging technologies such as mobile "smartphones" and multiple digital channels, media and various new channels, media and communications sectors are not only changing themselves but are also influenced by several external influences (Albarran, 2009).

Onwumechili and Ndolo (2013) pointed out that “since the end of the era of the vigorous development communication debates, there have been several issues that require us to re-assess development communication in Africa through various lenses.” They further pointed some of the issues which poses a lot of question about the impact of communication technology in Africa. They include:

1.      New communication technologies have been swiftly introduced in Africa. A rapid expansion of wireless communication technology, for example, has sparked new ways of communication and re-invention. What impact do these technologies have on development? Which position are they playing now or will they play in the future?

2.      There has been some improvement in different developmental fields. Which kinds of regular communication have been effective in those accomplishments and why? Where are the other barriers?

3.      The rapid democratisation and liberalization of the media sector in many African countries has significantly altered or shifted since the 1990s. How did those changes affect communication with the development? In recent years, urbanization has increased, what are the consequences of development communication correlated with this increasing urbanisation?

Alan B. Albarran pointed out five outside forces which influence media development in any society. They include globalization, regulation, economics, technology, and aspects of society. In this paper, we will build on these five components as they constitute the major drivers of development within any society.

HISTORY OF FILM IN NIGERIA

Nigeria's cinema background dates back to the late 19th century when peephole viewing of devices in motion pictures was the order of the day. They were quickly replaced with better film projection systems at the beginning of the 20th century; the first series of films shown in the Nigerian theatre were Western films, and the first film shown was between 12 to 22 August 1903 at the Glover Memorial Hall in Lagos during a film exhibition organized by a Spanish film company, Bilboa and company.

Since the 1920s, colonial filmmakers have started producing films for the local audience in Nigeria, mostly using mobile cinema as a means of an exhibition; the earliest feature film made in Nigeria is Geoffrey Barkas' Palaver produced in 1926. The movie has also been the first film ever to feature actors from Nigeria in a speaking role as cinemas were a popular feature of social life.

The film industry in Nigeria experienced rapid growth between the 1950s – 1980s with a lot of American, Chinese and Japanese films being shown in our cinemas. This era was being referred to as the golden era in the film industry. But this era suffered a decline due to;

Reduction of Naira's value, lack of funding and marketing support, lack of standard film studios and production equipment, recurrent government structural reform programs due to military dictatorships, and lack of practitioners' expertise. The downward trend in cinema practice has led to the sale of some of the largest cinema houses to religious bodies and turned to churches; others were closed down.

The emergence of the video film market in Nigeria is traced back to the 1980s when television productions thrived with Jimi Odumosu's Evil Encounter, a 1980 horror film released directly on television. This was the first production which gave a pointer to how lucrative making film directly on video can be with the streets of Alaba market flooded with video copies of the recorded films.

This method was developed and built upon at Alaba Market by producers and distributors to recreate the film industry, as the history of Nigerian cinema was facing a major decline. The film industry continued to increase with movies like Soso Meji (1988), Ekun (1989) and Living in Bondage (1992) which was argued to be the movie which kick-started the boom in the film industry. Although, several historians have argued otherwise.

From the year 2000 to present, the film industry has continued to thrive with cinema houses reopening around the country with modern infrastructure and technology.

HISTORY OF BROADCASTING IN NIGERIA

The history and creation of the Nigerian Press began on 3 December 1859 with the printing media by a Christian missionary named Reverend Henry Townsend, who founded in Nigeria the first Newspaper called "Iwe Iroyin fun awon Egba ati Yoruba' which simply means 'A Newspaper for the Egba and Yoruba” in today's Abeokuta, Ogun State's capital city, to encourage literacy and create elites among the EGBA's, not with current political motivations but as a matter of reality, successor newspapers chose to go against an indelible footprint as far as the political history of Nigeria is concerned. Subsequently, the death of 'Iwe Iroyin' culminated in the rise of other newspapers such as Anglo-African, Lagos Time and Gold Coast Advertiser, Lagos Observer, The Eagle and Lagos Critic, The Mirror, The Nigerian Chronicle, The Lagos Standard, Lagos Weekly Record, African Messenger, The West African Pilot, Nigerian Tribune (Reuben Abati, 1998). The period not only culminated in the rise of newspapers in Nigeria, but also gave birth to outspoken vibrant and seasoned journalists who made judicious use of this existing institution {print} to combat colonialists under nationalist struggle that eventually led to Nigeria's independence in 1960 and, as a matter of fact, has since placed them at the forefront of the political arena in Nigeria. H. Kukah {1999} claimed that journalism was the key mechanism by which the Nigerian anti-colonial movement was waged. Many of the main figures in this movement include naming just a handful, Herbert Macaulay, Nnamdi Azikiwe, Ernest Ikoli, Obafemi Awolowo, Anthony Enahoro, Dutse Mohammed Ali, Mokwugo Okoye. They were publishers, journalists, commentators and editors in different newspaper houses. Their newspapers acted as a forum to rally the people, disseminate nationalist consciousness, and condemn the worst expression of imperialist exploitation and the racial prejudice that they are accustomed to. Also the pre-eminent Nigerian Press historian Fred Omu {1978} said the early Nigerian Media established the most respected academic platform in the history of Nigeria. One in which the high standard of debate, discussion, the quality of thought and expression cannot fail to fascinate the modern reader.

Following the Freedom, the Nigerian Press has grown to the point that so many newspapers and magazines have been created, and electronic media such as WNTV, WNRC and NBC, among others, have changed to the Nigerian Television Authority {NTA} and the Nigerian Federal Radio Company {FRCN} with various national stations as well as other television and radio stations owned by State Governments. Although, private individuals were not empowered and given licence to own electronic media as it is for their publishing counterparts. The important thing regarding Nigerian Press at this point of our political growth is that the press continues to perform their roles, which appears to be a danger to the egotistical interests of certain people in government who plan to monopolize and dominate the public space as a result of which the instruments available in government have become clever tools to achieving their goals.

MAJOR DEVELOPMENTS OF THE 21^ST CENTURY

A lot of development strides have occurred since the inception of the 21^st century. Some of these developments are in the economic sector with the development of economic policies that drive trade and commercial activities. On the other hand, there is a technological development that cut across different sectors such as infrastructural, mechanical, automobile, telecommunication and media (film and broadcast). The five major technological innovations of the 21^st century that has actually shaped our world and improved communication among individuals, organizations and international communications and relations among governments and multinational organizations include;  Self-Driven Cars, 3-D Printing, Social Media, Bluetooth and Fiber Optics. The film and broadcast industry are the vehicles that drive these into the heart of society.

GLOBALIZATION

The mother of all developmental strides is globalization. It is the bedrock upon which all forms of the developmental initiative is thriving in the 21^st century.

 

Alan B. Albaran (2009), described globalization thus;

Globalization is a concept with many different definitions (Micklethwait & Wooldridge, 2000); for media companies and industries, the act of globalization happens when businesses move across domestic boundaries to engage customers in other nations, thereby widening their markets. Media globalization was initially limited to selling content around the world, a trend that started with Hollywood movies and later television programming. The United States is the world's largest exporter of media content, posing many questions about America's hegemony abroad and the notion of "cultural imperialism" (Jayakar & Waterman, 2000).

Albaran went on to say that, Globalization also takes place as companies buy other assets in other countries. News Corporation was first an Australian newspaper business, purchasing newspapers in the United Kingdom and the United States, and then buying a group of television stations that would ultimately become the Fox TV Network. After first purchasing Colombia Tri-Star and then MGM, Sony entered the film industry.

Globalization is fast changing the world and is reducing it into a global village where governments can relate and make economic, political, socio-cultural and trade policies that affect citizens of different countries. The media through the film and broadcast industry are major tools through which globalization is having a reaching effect in our world.

Globalization also affected the perspectives of international film production. Nolwenn Mingant and Cecilia Tirtaine (2012), Global Film and Television Industries Today: An Analysis of Industrial and Cultural Relations wrote on the impact of globalization on film production.

1.      Globalization has led to increased communications between the various countries' film and television industries, particularly within the English-speaking world. The international business of the film and television industries, linked to globalization, has had far-reaching implications from an industrial point of view, especially with the creation of "runaway productions," as well as a cultural point of view, with enhanced blurring of national frontiers and identities.

2.      The trend of "runaway productions," that is to say movies that would be released in the U.S. but whose filming took place outside of Hollywood or abroad (Peltzman), while not recent, has become more common over the past two decades. Many Runaways are economically driven. The developing countries–or host states outside of California in the US–are producing a population that is predominantly educated, healthier and less unionised. Local authorities and national governments also provide very lucrative benefits that significantly reduce the total cost of production. When there were no studios, shooting facilities or post-production facilities in the host areas, the As was the case at the Gold Coast in Queensland, Australia (Goldsmith, Ward, O'Regan) Hollywood majors regularly participated in their making. The other runaways are "Peltzman" (creative runaway productions). With their "exoticism," their alienity, the production team prefers unique international localities.

3.      The recent epidemic of runaways has had significant implications. In Global Hollywood, 1st Miller et al. described the "universal division of cultural labour," with a labor force of production spanning the globe. Then Goldsmith and O'Regan underline the growing global rivalry between production centers in different parts of the world in The Film Studio. This paper draws attention to other implications. For example, Peltzman shows how competitive rivalry within the US is, with many states attempting to defuse California as a major centre of production. Therefore, rivalry doesn't necessarily affect all jobs. Not the "above-the-liners" (actors, directors, etc.), but the "below-the-liners" (extras and technicians) who work locally in Hollywood are the hardest hit by the effects of the job versatility that the runaway phenomenon entails.

4.      The internationalization of the television and film industries also poses cultural concerns. The internationalization of money, labor, and filming locations makes it hard to establish a film's nationality. For example, Murillo's research questions the nationality of The Scope of Control, a film shot on location in Spain by an American director, with an international cast and produced by US companies. The fact that in recent years Hollywood has created a growing array of "French," "British," or "Australian" movies has further complicated the issue of how to define a "nationality" of a film. Movie remakes and adaptations of TV shows from one country to another, including Till Death Us Do Part (1966) or The Office (2001), often include the distortion of ethnic identity and ethnic origin. Defining a film and program's nationality can be further complicated in certain cases by the cultural identity it reflects. There might be a difference between the location of the shoot and where it stands (such as Vancouver posing as New York, for example). The distortion may be attributed to the characters in the film using many different languages–and the native language of the characters is not necessarily the one of the actors who impersonate them. For Hollywood blockbusters, the multilingual film trend is gaining popularity, and Murillo reveals that independent author Jim Jarmusch is pushing this to the limit.

5.      All relevant papers also highlight the fact that ethnicity and cultural identity lies in the beholder's eye. It is less something that exists per se than something that the director has created and re-appropriated by the viewer. So Jarmusch did appear to prefer a quasi-documentary strategy to the Spanish landscape, to isolate his films from the Spaghetti Westerns filmed at the same locations in Andalusia. Both Murillo and Ducray also emphasize in cultural terms the topic of audience perceptions. To Spanish analysts, what US analysts interpret as Spanishness is not the same. What US and British consumers view in a sitcom as funny and/not "politically correct" is–in most cases –rather different. Therefore cultural representation is strongly connected with cultural perception.

6.      Thus, in a history of internationalization and frequent intercultural interactions back and forth, films and television shows are often watched and displayed on a very local basis. A program is decoded according to the cultural norms of which it is being played–hence the value of tailoring programs for local audiences. The British example produced by Ducray parallels recent cases of Hollywood film and TV producers adapting to Latin American audiences the show The Nanny, Desperate Housewives or High School Musical. Reflecting on cultural values and their portrayal is often an intellectual process, as seen by the "un-American" label provided by U.S. critics to The Limits of Control, or compliance with "political correctness" underlined in The Office US. Similarly, when cultural and industrial problems are clearly intertwined, local concerns are in the minds of policymakers, whether they are called upon by American politicians to formulate protective legislation for Californian employees or by Australian politicians collaborating with film professionals to attract international film and television productions in their area –the same applies to any host Nation or country, with lucrative deals (subsidies, tax cuts, etc.).

7.      The paper also highlights the globalisation of the film and television industry in a groundbreaking way, presenting different views, by seeking to illustrate the positive effects of Hollywood's participation in production abroad, rather than just the negative, by deciding to challenge the effects on Hollywood itself, not just on overseas locations, by preferring to concentrate on independent films and not only on Hollywood blockbusters, and by reviewing a British sitcom adapted to the US and not one of the American formats sold abroad.

8.      Through questioning reflection in their different approaches, the papers underline that the trend is not unidirectional as opposed to what is conventionally assumed, in Hollywood forcing its vision on foreign countries. Since the very beginning Ducray has been challenging the validity of the principle of cultural hegemony in a globalized age. Her paper stresses the importance of re-conceptualizing foreign partnerships as cultural goods travel back and forth (but also production teams). A deterministic force tends to be less than a continuous movement of influences and counter-influences from a central location. On the industrial level, the Gold Coast article by Goldsmith, Ward and O'Regan insists on the way in which local interests take control of the development process and turn US involvement to their advantage. At an industrial level, the Gold Coast report by Goldsmith, Ward and O'Regan focuses on how local groups gain hold of the development process and turn US participation to their advantage. Such positive economic effects are the reasons why more and more countries (but also American states) as pointed out by Peltzman are setting up lucrative deals and opportunities to tempt US outputs. Hollywood is not the only driving force behind the phenomenon of globalisation, and it is not the only benefitted from it.

Besides film and broadcast industries being major players in the 21s century development, they have also been impacted upon by globalization.

TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENT

Nyekwere Ogedi wrote “As the world grows complex and sophisticated, new media technologies are invented. The invention of new media technologies has always been a catalyst for change in the broadcast industry. This change can be attributed to the introduction of new media technologies in broadcasting occasioned by giant technological advancement. The advancement in media technologies has cut the barrier of time and space in our broadcast industry; it has also made communication easier and more democratic and the creation and distribution of media content easier.” This technological advancement in the media has always set for new vistas in the communication industry. Nyekwere also observed Defluer and Dennis (2001:221) when they said “Technology has always been a metaphor for change in the media industry. As far back as Gutenberg, it was technology: the movable type that spurred change. Later, fast printing presses, the telegraph, zinc engraving, modern photography, radio, television, fibre optics, and other technologies heralded new developments for media and their audience."

The entrance of new media technologies and the complementary applications of these new technologies with older once makes communication more convenient in society. It also makes information processing, delivery, storage and retrieval easier and faster. The new media technologies are a great facilitator in this era of globalization. The emergence of new media technologies has according to Marshall McLuhan been shrunk into a "global village". The concept of a global village places communication at the very heart of society. Communication technology is to the world what the central nervous system is to the human body. Development of new communication technologies is shaping the way the world works and also giving a new perspective to global issues like finding a cure pandemics, war, natural disaster and climate change.

Not only did technological advancement improve communication in our world, but it also changed the production of the film. From the discovery of motion pictures during the second industrial revolution, the film has not only become a big business, it has become a major source of influence on how people view the world. Chris Breitenbach observed and said that the entertainment industry “has an enormous impact on how people perceive the world and how people behave, as they provide information, elicit empathy, and shape everyday behaviour.” Chris further asserts that since its inception, the “continual technological innovation has improved the medium, all the while expanding its expressive possibilities.”

New film technologies in the areas of motion pictures, 3D video graphics, improved sound effects, etc. have not only transformed society, but it also set precedence for future developmental strides.

SOCIAL ASPECTS OF FILM AND BROADCAST

Uchenna Onuzulike (2008) in his analysis of the movie industry in Nigeria said,

“The Nigerian film industry addresses social conscience and contributes t world culture. It is my firm conviction that the film industry of any country should promote the well-being of humanity, which is an issue that is increasingly critical given the way in which movies play an ever-greater and more important role in society. Films in Nigeria are produced on comparatively low budgets but are extremely popular and a huge influence and impact on popular opinion and culture there”

Uchenna further pointed out that the films are shot in English and the 3 major indigenous languages (Igbo, Hausa and Yoruba). This helps increase their influence in society, and also export and promote their culture to other African states within and outside the region. The film industry has not only opened up an opportunity for filmmakers to express the cultural heritage of their people, but to also showcase the cultural practice of other people's culture.

The film industry in Nigerian has risen to be a strong element of Nigeria’s entertainment and popular culture. It has established for itself the unique feature and ability to not only meet the entertainment needs of the Nigerian society but it also serves as an educator to a broad spectrum of the Nigerian society. Its audience base stretches from the low-income earners in the rural and suburban areas to the honourable members of the National Assembly which is the highest decision making body of the country.

The broadcast media industry also develop television and radio content to appeal to their various audience scattered.

Nkrumah (1964) in Albert-James Sarpey Tayman (2014) stated that “every society is placed in nature. And it seeks to influence nature, to impose such transformations upon nature as will develop the environment of its society for its better fulfilment”. The broadcast media through its programs engage and influence its audience to act and behave in a certain way.

(O'Shaughnessy and Stadler 1999 in Tayman 2014 asserts that “the media have become an important part of the daily routine of life for a lot of people the world over. As a vehicle, it delivers into varieties of social settings the news, information, entertainment, and distanced events; connecting people from disparate communities into a virtual social community able to witness, in real-time or through time-shifted programming, media content that impacts social impressions, beliefs and knowledge systems about a plethora of social and physical realities.” Television stations design content that influences the minds of their audience on topical issues bordering around culture and development. In this era of technological advancement and globalisation, the media industry, especially through televised content, is also increasingly being used to promote Western concepts of modernity that governments in developing countries find unsuited for their development goals but agree to in order to be accepted as progressive.

 REGULATION

Government regulations on the film and broadcast industries brought a lot of control to the industry. The introduction of the Freedom of information Act (FOIA) in 2011 gave the broadcast industry more power to access information from government agencies and parastatals. Although, the FOIA contains more exceptions which stand as a hindrance to media practitioners having access to required information. Duru and Ezeh (2018) said “Prior to the birth of the Act, Nigeria had no law which guaranteed citizens access to public records and information. Many Nigerian laws have secrecy clauses prohibiting the disclosure of information, for instance, the Official Secret Act, the Criminal Code and the Penal Code. Most public servants are made to swear to oaths of secrecy when employed and the general consequence of these is an entrenched culture of secrecy and arbitrariness in public institutions.”

Regulatory practices differ from one country to the other; through regulation, govern­ments require businesses and industries to follow cer­tain rules and regulations in order to operate. Most businesses and industries want to operate without government regulations. Any society that would operate like would end up in war and a complete state of anarchy. But rules and regu­lations are important to establishing and maintaining competition, to protect workers and consumers, and to generate revenues through taxation in or­der for government and the society to operate efficiently.

CONCLUSION

In this paper, we talked about the development of film and broadcast industries by looking at the history of film in Nigeria and also the history of broadcasting in Nigeria. We went on to discuss the major developmental strides which aided communication which is at the centre of development in the 21^st century. The five major external forces that influence media development in any society is; globalization, government regulations, technology, economic policies and socio-cultural life of a people.

Communication is a major determiner to any developmental stride in any nation or society and this paper established that communication is to development what central nervous system is to the body.

BEING INTENTIONAL

Click on the link below to listen to the audio podcast of BEING INTENTIONAL:

https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9hbmNob3IuZm0vcy8xMzA1NTE1MC9wb2RjYXN0L3Jzcw/episode/ODZjZjljZGUtOTNlZC00NTA0LTg2ZjAtYmY0NzgxNjZiZDhi?sa=X&ved=0CAUQkfYCahcKEwig59nGktvwAhUAAAAAHQAAAAAQAQ

TRANSCRIPT

Sometimes, life throws thistles at us. Sometimes our life becomes mechanical, following daily routines and schedules that become a culture. Often times than not, we are stock in these routines. It is sometimes difficult to pull out of this situation. Some of these routines are positive, but most of the time, they are negative and unhealthy routines that affect us negatively. These end up forming habits.

We must realize that to emerge as winners over our internal battles, we must intentionally choose to win in spite of the negative circumstances around and within us.

To be intentional means to be deliberate in the choices we make. Being intentional means having the ability to see specific results in the future that if you achieve them will make things bigger and better for yourself, business and those around you.

Being intentional means having the ability to make deliberate choices about the food we eat, cloths we wear, kind of job we work, school to attend, man/woman to marry and our life style in general. In the bible, God said “… I have set before you life and death ….” (Apologies to non-Christians). There is no room for being confused. Confusion comes as a result of indecision and indecision comes as a result of a weak resolve.

Being intentional means having clarity of purpose. It also means taking specific actions on our thoughts and feelings that are important to us. The life of intentionality entails not leaving anything to chance while hoping for the best to happen.

It takes being intentional to get out of a bad routine, habit, relationship, business partnership, etc. the saying goes that “we do not control the thoughts that crosses our mind, but we can determine what thought stays”. Intentionality involves taking cognizance of the process. You have to walk the ropes, work the talk and follow the process. The holy bible says “looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross despising the shame”. Intentional living focuses more on the process (journey) than the outcome. The choices we make everyday defines us and ultimately brings a sense of purpose and satisfaction.

STEPS ON BEING INTENTIONAL

People often say they didn’t have a choice on a particular matter. The truth is we always have a choice. For every choice, there is a consequence whether good or bad. Becoming intentional about our choices has a lot to do with our personality. You ask yourself the following questions; who are you? What do you want? Are your steps aligned with your thoughts?

1.    Know who you are: your identity is found in your purpose. Why you were created. Even the smallest and most insignificant thing created by God contributes to balancing the ecosystem. You were created for a reason and you have a purpose. everyone was born to create a balance in life. The choices you make are imbedded in your identity. Life isn’t lived in a vacuum. Self-identity brings self-awareness. When you are aware of who you are, you become intentional about the choices you make. Who are you? To identify yourself, you need to take a deep meditation and inward assessment of yourself. You are not who you are because of your actions, but you are who you are because of your thought which leads to your actions. You can’t find yourself in engaging in extracurricular activities, you find yourself when you look inward. Who are you?

2.   Know what you want: what you want is always tied to your purpose. What are your values, goals, priorities, etc. why do you get up from bed every morning. What do you do that makes you feel alive? Know what you want and go for it. What you want is a product of who you are.

3.     Align your actions with your thoughts: if you think you are a failure, you will most likely fail. If you think you are going to die, you will most likely die sooner. If you think you are sick, you will most likely fall sick. Man is a product of his thought pattern. For as a man thinketh in his heart, so is he. Its impossible for you to walk in contradiction with your thought. You may fake or cover it up for a while, but soon enough, your actions will align with your thought. Your actions tell the rest of the world what your thoughts are. Your actions are a bye-product of your thought pattern. The mind is a free way, you can’t control what comes in, but you can control what stays; for what stays produces what you do.

 

Watch your thoughts, they become your actions, watch your actions, they become your behaviour. Watch your behaviour, they become your habit. Watch your habit, they affect and impact your destiny.

 

Don’t leave things to chance and assumptions hoping that they would fix themselves. The reason you are still confused is because you have decided to be indecisive.

 

The man who wins isn’t the man with all the resources, the man who wins is the man who is intentional. Intentionality is a function of the mind.

Be intentional about your choices

Be intentional about your job

Be intentional about your relationships (business, friendships, marriage, etc.)

Be intentional about your habits

Be intentional about helping other people

Be intentional about your attitude towards other people

 To live a more productive and happy lifestyle, be intentional....

6 PRACTICAL WAYS OF DEALING WITH FAILURE

Oxford online dictionary defines failure as Lack of success. So in the above definition, the absence of success is termed “Failure”. It is the state of failing at something. Failure can actually be a source of motivation and inspiration, but people haven’t realised that yet. In this particular publication, we shall be looking at ways we can deal with failure. There are several ways that failure can be dealt with, below are a few ways;

1. See failure as a learning point: When you fail, rather than dwell in self-pity, view your failure as a source of knowledge and learning. As an individual, I have failed in business and in relationships. But rather than dwell in self-pity and forming a pity party, I learnt from my failures ways of how not to fail the next time I try. If you don’t find out why and how you failed, you might not be able to find out how not to fail in your next venture.

·      2. Accepting your emotional state: Sometimes it is okay to feel vulnerable to your emotions. It’s okay to cry. It’s okay to feel sad when you fail at something; it could be a task at the office, a contract or a partnership you had invested so much in, it could be a relationship you had put in so much effort in, etc.

Do not lie to yourself about how you feel. Acknowledge your pains, hurt, sadness & frustration, and accept it. This will help you heal faster and motivate you to seek for ways never to fail again. In 2017, a friend of mine connected me with a gentle man from the Northern part of Nigeria. This man needed Tipper trucks that will transport raw materials for cement production from Lagos to Kogi state. Now this business would have changed me forever as that particular business was intended to last for 2 years. They needed about 100 Tipper trucks for this job. I put in a lot of effort in making sure I get good trucks to deliver on the job. I put in so much effort and hard work to ensure the success of the contract. I was so fortunate to find trucks that were sound enough to do the job. But the contract failed because the client wasn’t willing to pay the required amount that was quoted for the job. They wanted to pay an amount far lesser. That failed contract demoralised me and I felt really devastated. I thought of the resources I had invested in travelling and other connections I had made for the job. I thought of the profit I would have made at the end of the job. I struggled with the emotional trauma for a long time, because I didn’t want to accept the emotions I felt, I wanted to mask my emotions, so people would not know how I felt. I healed faster after I opened myself up to my emotions

It is more devastating and dangerous to lie to yourself about how you feel and the current state of your emotions when you fail at something.

So go ahead and accept your emotions, allow yourself to feel bad for some time, know the emotion you feel and allow yourself to experience it. That failure and emotion will motivate and inspire you to work harder and smarter.

·       3. Avoid unhealthy practise: People try to hide their pain when they fail at something. You might hear them say stuff like “I didn’t really want it anyway” after they had tried something and failed or “she wasn’t really the girl I wanted” after he must have tried to woo her and she turned him down. But trying to hide the pain won’t make it go away. Trying to distract yourself by adopting some unhealthy lifestyles such as smoking, gluttony, drugs and even drinking will only worsen your situation by further deteriorating your health rather than heal your pain. You don’t have to jeopardise your health simply because you failed at something. You must bear in mind that failure is temporary, but developing an unhealthy habit can have a lasting devastating effect on you.

·        4.  Adopt some healthy habits instead: When you fail at a thing, some of the healthy practises you can adopt to help you deal with the failure includes;

Calling a friend: This actually goes a long way in helping people deal with stress, anxiety and failure. There is a popular cliché ‘a problem shared, is a problem solved’. This has actually helped me a lot in dealing with certain difficult issues. When you discuss your failure with a close friend, you free yourself of your frustrations and worries.

Taking a long walk: Sometimes a long walk helps free your mind of things that bothers you; especially when you had just failed in something. My friend Charlie takes a long walk whenever he experiences failure in something or going through anxiety issues. He says ‘long walks help me develop different perspectives about life and when I engage long walks during crisis periods in my life, I see my worries differently’. Long walks don’t only help clear your mind, it is also a great exercise for your body.

Meditations: This is a powerful mind exercise that helps heal pains even faster. It allows you to connect with your inner self and get to the root of your soul. During meditations, you develop a new sense of confidence and faith that you can actually succeed. You also reflect on past successes and you are able to develop a new perspective about life. It improves your self-esteem, self-worth, and confidence. There are audios you can download online to help you with your meditations.

Hang out with children, pets, and close-friends: This works very well for animal and children lovers. You can go to a park and watch children play; you can take your dog or cat to a park to play. The idea is to engage you in healthy practises. If you don’t discover some healthy practises and lifestyle, you may not be able to desist from the negative ones that you indulge in.

·     5. The belief system: A lot of factors and elements could have been responsible for your failure; poor preparation, government policy or regulations, last minute disappointment by an investor/partner, or some unforeseen circumstances such as an accident, or death of a loved one. When people fail, they usually start developing some irrational belief about failure. Such belief as “I’m a bad person, that was why I failed”, “Nobody will like or accept me because I failed, and if you are from Africa you might attribute your failure to some diabolical and fetish belief that you are suffering from some ancestral curse from your village. Such thoughts are negative and would only hold you back from trying again and even succeeding. This kind of belief and thinking will further reduce your self-esteem and confidence. The lack of confidence and low self-esteem result in some negative behavioural pattern which would include; hatred, envy, jealousy, violence, depression, and even suicide. The Holy bible says when the righteous falls seven times, he will surely rise again.

You must understand that failing is part of the process and develop positive attitudes and belief towards life in order to succeed. Consciously develop the ‘I can do’ mentality. Give your positive reinforcements of encouraging yourself to learn from your failure and mistakes. Challenge yourself to try again. Yes! There is always a next time.

Listen to inspiring music, audio books and videos, read books like the bible, and other inspirational literatures by Brian Tracy, John Maxwell, John Mason, Steve Jobs, Richard Templar, Robert Kiyosaki, etc. change your circle of negative and myopic friends. They will only point out your inadequacies and the wrong in the world. Associate with people that will help you see possibilities around you and even help you achieve them.

You will start succeeding when you start changing your belief system.

·      6. Take responsibility for your failure and move on with the lessons learnt: Failure is the beginning of a new chapter. When you fail, it is important to accept a certain amount of responsibility for your failure. Acknowledge that you are partly the cause of your failure and take responsibility for it. It’s okay to blame external forces and other people when you fail, but you must also realise that part of the failure was your fault. Whenever you think of your failure, think of explanations as to why you failed rather than excuses. Find out the reasons why you failed and ask the question “how can I do it better the next time?” Failure is a great teacher if you are open to learning. Seek for ways to do things differently and ensure you don’t repeat your mistakes. Like Thomas Edison, Walt Disney, Benson Igboejesi who failed several times in business and a host of others who failed in different areas of profession. Find out what they did differently that bounced them back, and apply some of their methods where it is applicable to your own situation. Use the information you have gathered from your failure and your study of why you failed and create a workable plan. Apostle Paul said “…… I press towards the mark …..” he didn’t remain in his failure; he created a plan and followed it until it worked out. Just like a baby doesn’t just start running in a day. The child first learns to sit before trying to crawl. When it’s time for the child to crawl, he tries and falls down severally before he stands. And that child keeps trying until he stands, walks and also runs. The child never gives up or in. He keeps trying until he achieves his objectives. So you must continue to strive, push and pursue, no matter how many times you fail.

Sometimes, what causes us to fail is our fear for something. If you must succeed, you must identify your greatest fear, and face it. Step out of your comfort zone. Faith is not the absence of fear. Do not stay in your comfort zone and expect to succeed or have a breakthrough. All those who ever succeeded, took steps of faith out of their comfort zone. Failure is part of the process. Don’t die there in that negative circumstance. Seek for help from experts and professionals in that field, create a plan and jump right back in. you will succeed if you try again.

Do not ignore the God factor. God is the source of strength and wisdom for a comeback when you fail. Paul declared and said “I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength”. You have got to believe and put your faith in God.

ELIMINATING COMPETITION

Business involve the activities of planning, directing, conceptualizing, strategizing and controlling people, things and events to achieve organizational goals and maximize profit. If the business must grow, it must overcome challenges. Some of those challenges come from competitors. Any business that must survive in this 21st century must deal with competition. It is almost impossible for anyone to claim novelty of a particular idea. Whatever idea it is, someone is either doing it or is also thinking in this line as you. Competitors are the people that motivate you do better in your services. Without competition, most businesses would not treat their customers nice, not improve on the quality of their products and services and they would not improve their way of doing business. Business is more fun and interesting with the presence of competition. Every business wants to operate at the blue ocean where there are little or no competitions at all. To operate at the blue sea, you must have squashed all your competitors.

Elimination of competition is one aspect of business that give CEOs much concern. They always asked where did this competitor come from? Why can't they just leave us alone? Why are they stealing our idea?

To subdue or eliminate competition, you can apply the following practical ways;

1.     ACKNOWLEDGE THEIR PRESENCE; The sooner you realize that you are not in the race alone, the better for you. No business empire is safe from competition, you must know that everyone wants to be successful and people are not just folding their arms and doing nothing. Successful businesses identify and analyse their competitions before they commence operations. The fact that you can't see them today, doesn't mean they don't exist. They do! Its a matter of time, they will surface.

2.     IDENTIFY THEM; Consciously seek out those who are in the same business with you. Who are they? What do they offer? How are they offering it? What are their strengths? What are their weaknesses? How many percent of the market are they controlling? At what price are they offering? Etc. Also identify other products that can serve as substitute to your own. Know thy enemy! 

3.     FORTIFY YOUR BRAND; The corporate world is a battle ground. Everyone is in it for the profit. Conduct a SWOT analysis of your organization. Find the loop holes. Carry out simulations to find whether your strategies actually works. Find the weak links and seal them up. Develop yourself and your staff for aggressive take over. Improve on the quality of your products/services, if possible, repackage your product, develop an excellent customer relations. Also cover legal loop holes. Fortification strengthens all areas of your business. 

4.   LAUNCH AN AGGRESSIVE TAKE OVER; Launch a full scale promotional campaign and sales strategy of your improved products and services with the intention of regaining back your market. Show no mercy to your competition. Do not hold back any strategy when launching a full scale marketing communication.

5.     EVALUATE RESULTS AND RELAUNCH; Your competitors are just as desperate as you are to dominate and control the market. So expect them to come at you with force. Anticipate retaliation and have a strategic counter attack plan. Evaluate the results of your previous strategies and be sure you are not making mistakes. Its a continuous circle that must not end if that business must continue.

Thank you very much for reading this article, if you loved it, simply go the comment section and drop a comment.

WINNING ATTITUDE; THE POWER OF BEING PROACTIVE

Photocredit - Truelancer.com

Henry David Thoreau wrote ‘I know of no more encouraging fact than the unquestionable ability of man to elevate his life by conscious endeavor’

It takes the conscious endeavor of an individual to achieve success amidst harsh economic situation, poor family background, poor governmental policies and bad leadership.

Productivity in any field requires being proactive. Proactivity, according to dictionary.com means ‘Serving to prepare for, intervene in or control an unexpected occurrence or situation especially a negative or difficult one’. Simply put, it means taking active steps in turning a bad, negative situation to a positive and favourable one. Always remember that your mind is your greatest asset and your most important resources. If you lose it, you’ve lost it.

In the previous article, we talked about the power of the mind; I am sure we learnt a few ways on how to develop our minds to achieve results. The mind is the most powerful weapon that can be used to overcome even spirit forces. Now continuing this series, we shall talk about another very important aspect of the attitude that winners carry with them where ever they go. That’s the attitude of being proactive. Every leader that ever made a difference in the world, name them; Dr. Martin Luther King Jnr., Nelson Mandela, Sir Winston Church Hill, Margaret Archer and even Jesus; they were all proactive when it comes to leading people and becoming relevant in their sphere of contact. We can go on mentioning world leaders who stood up for something in the midst of steep opposition and adversity, how about those employees in their work places who nobody takes note of, yet they contribute immensely to the success of the organization.

‘We are not our feelings. We are not our moods. We are not even our thoughts….’ Stephen R. Covey. The fact that we see ourselves in a certain way doesn’t mean that’s how we are; it just means we have been conditioned to think that way. Stephen R. Covey calls it conditions and conditioning and he has grouped them into three different categories;

•         Genetic determinism; Your grandparents did it to you
•         Physic determinism; Your parents did it to you while nurturing you
•   Environmental determinism; Your boss, spouse, team member, government policies and regulations, economic situation, classmates etc or someone or something in your environment did it to you.

A majority of us have based our success and happiness on these social mirrors

In the previous article, I talked about building you mind’s capacity through constant learning and meditation exercises. To be proactive means to be in charge of your mind. ‘The first and best victory is to conquer self’ Plato. To conquer self means to be in total control of your mind. To achieve personal victory, you need self awareness just like Viktor Frankl. Stephen Covey had this write about Frankl

 ‘Frankl was a psychiatrist and a Jew. He was imprisoned in the death camps of Nazi Germany, where he experienced things that were so repugnant to our sense of decency that we shudder to even repeat them. His parents, his brother and his wife died in the camps or were sent to the gas ovens. Except for his sister, his entire family perished. Frankl himself suffered torture and innumerable indignities, never knowing from one moment to the next if his path would lead to the ovens or he would be among the “SAVED” who would remove the bodies or shovel out the ashes  of those so fated.

One day, naked and alone in a small room, he began to become aware of what he later called “The last of the human freedoms”. The freedom his Nazi captors could not take away. They could control his entire environment, they could do what they wanted to his body, but Viktor Frankl was a self aware being who could look as an observer at his very involvement. His basic identity was intact. He could decide within himself how all of this was going to affect him. Between what happened to him or the stimulus and his response to it, was his freedom or power to choose that response. In the midst of his experiences, Frankl would project himself into a different circumstances, such as lecturing to his students after his release from the death camps. He would describe himself in the classroom, in his mind’s eye and give the lessons he was learning during his torture’.

The strength of proactivity lies in you knowing that No one can hurt you without your consent. Having a clear understanding of your strengths and weaknesses are key elements that help you achieve ‘Self Awareness’

PROACTIVE LANGUAGE

The Language of proactive people is absolutely fixed on positivity. Failure in a certain task or project is usually a lesson for them to improve and get better at what they do. Failure isn’t an option for them although they may face certain setbacks and limitations in their quest to achieve their objectives.

Reactive people go towards the negative and blame everyone else but themselves about the negative circumstances and outcomes of their lives; their lifestyle, emotional/psychological state and everything else that goes wrong. They are often times ‘IRRESPONSIBLE’ and always very defensive; so you get to hear statements and comments such as;

•          ‘Its not my fault and there is nothing I can do about it’
•          ‘That’s just the way I am and I can’t change it’.
•      'This is how everyone else is doing it. It can't be done differently'

Reactive people lack the creative power to generate the positive energy that can help them come out of a bad situation.

Just like Viktor Fankl, between the stimulus and your response is a very strong and powerful determining element ‘CHOICE’. You cannot control some of the negative circumstances around you such as the family into which you were born, the environment where you were raised, the standard of education you receive. But you have the power to choose your response to these negative circumstances.

The quality of our life is dependent on the choices we make daily; the choice of food, outfits, where we go, the circle of friends we keep, the type of movies we watch, the type of relationships e keep etc. No wonder the bible says ‘Guard your heart with all diligence, for out of it are the of life’.