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Volume 1 Issue 2
Better Life Optimum Outcomes Magazine
February 2010
In This Issue: Najoli Nugget Insights on Better Life Herman Jumba Najoli shares Insights on Better Life Better Life Every Day Plotting Your Destiny Book Review Book Review Review of "The Road to Arrival" Quick Quotes Dreams and Better Life Hughes, Evans, Thoreau
Najoli Nugget | Better Life Every Day | Book Review | Quotes Najoli Nugget Insights on Better Life By Herman Jumba Najoli, MA As a student at the University of Nairobi I always spent lots of time in solitude as I pondered about the future and what I wanted it to look like for me. The more I did this, the more it became clearer to me that I wanted to live a better life than what I had seen and experienced up till that time in my life. I never at that time desired to leave the third world and head for the industrialized West. I loved and still love my country but somehow as I began dreaming about a better life and developing my vision for life, it became imperative that I had to leave the country for a while. Living and experiencing a better life does not have to mean that you have to leave your country. In some instances a change of location might be in order but it is more a matter of disposition than position. My idea for the Better Life Company was conceived after I had altered my disposition. I had to change my outlook on life and that elevated my thinking as I began to see myself as a more productive and visionary member of society. My whole purpose in life now is to empower others with knowledge, skills, wisdom and resources that will enlighten, encourage, equip, embolden and enable them to embody the better life. My vision deep down is a world in which all people are fully empowered with all they need to live a better life. In this edition of BLOOM, Iâ€&#x;d like to share with you insights on how you can empower yourself to live a better life. Insights on Better Life
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1. Create a powerful picture of your destiny. You have to see yourself living the life you have imagined. Tiger Woods wins golf tournaments because he created a mental picture of himself capturing golf records when he was a kid. Greatness comes to those who anticipate it because the world will stand aside and lets pass the man who knows where he is going. Winners start of with a powerful picture of their destiny. 2. Widen your vision by developing a BHAG. You need a Big Hairy Audacious Goal (BHAG). The quality of your vision depends on the magnitude of your BHAG. Think beyond your daily sustenance. Have a goal that will continuously pull you into the future. A goal is simply a dream given substance, direction and timing. 3. Make adjustments when things are not going right. The key to winning in life is making adjustments. Change is not your enemy - change is your greatest friend. If you get stuck in one mode of doing things the same way youâ€&#x;ve always done them, you will go insane. Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again yet expecting different results. 4. Leverage your potential by playing to win. Some people play not to lose. That is the prime recipe for failure. You have to play to win, not play to avoid losing. Mentality is the key to winning, perspective is the hand that turns the key. Play to win!. 5. Develop a bigger picture by getting vertical. In our every day dealings, do we spend too much time on the horizontal that we fail to see our potential in the
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vertical? Is life all about what‟s happening around us? Think about this. By getting vertical we can gain a bird‟s eye view so that we have a bigger picture of what‟s possible. Think at a higher level. Human beings are so designed such that they move forward based on the quality of their thinking. If our thinking is stagnant then our growth will be stunted! One of the things that keeps many people at the same level is herdthink - they go with the masses instead of using their quality of thinking to chart out a path that is truly theirs. Awaken the giant within you. Recognize that it is only the mentality you embrace that will either make you or break you. Go the extra mile. Pay the costly price. Persevere. Stretch yourself. Do the undoable. Break the boundaries of limitation. Soar above mediocrity. Don‟t settle for the normal and mundane. Awaken the giant within. Become a people person. The idea of being a „people person‟ has been around for a long time. Dale Carnegie‟s 1936 masterpiece, “How to Win Friends and influence People.”, has helped so many people over the years to develop a people-centered perspective that has enabled them to leave great legacies. I would highly suggest a reading of the book. Contribute to the advancement of your community. President John F. Kennedy immediately became a world figure with his acceptance speech in which he said, “And so, my fellow Americans: ask not what your country can do for you -ask what you can do for your country. My fellow citizens of the world: ask not what America will do for you, but what together we can do for the freedom of man. ” In order to live a better life you must ascend in thought to where you are asking what you can do for others rather than what they can do for you. Live beyond the present by thinking about eternity. In the light of history, our years are short and our days are few. Yet, our lives have greater significance than we can imagine. As the Roman general, Maximus, exhorts his men in Gladiator, “What we do in life echoes in eternity.” Live your life honorably and with a clean conscience before God and your fellow man. Focus your effort on worthwhile causes that will outlast your time on this planet.
Better Life Every Day Plotting Your Destiny It is increasingly becoming evident that this is not the age working your way up some corporate or company ladder as has been the traditional norm. There‟s been a huge shift in the average worker‟s thinking as we are seeing people change jobs many times, resort to working from home and even start their own small businesses. This is an age of empowerment and those with a desire to live above the level of mediocrity are seeking ways and means in which they can live more meaningful lives. The key to this is to plot your own destiny. Human beings are so designed such that they move forward based on the quality of their thinking. If our thinking is stagnant then our growth will be stunted! One of the things that keeps many people at the same level is herdthink - they go with the masses instead of using their quality of thinking to chart out a path that is truly theirs. I like the trailblazer mentality. A true trailblazer is a pioneer - someone who helps to open up a new line of pursuit and purpose. In order to be a trailblazer you have to plot your destiny. In my book, Battling for Your Prophetic Destiny, I have written at length about specific strategies that can be utilized in plotting one‟s destiny. This whole month I have been ruminating on this idea and a few thoughts came to my mind that would be very empowering in the realization of personal destiny. These thoughts form the acronym DESTINY:
Determine your true passions You have to find out exactly what makes you tick. Many people stop pursuing their true passions when they get a job. A job is your pre-occupation while your true passions are your true occupation. What gets you excited? Embrace your assignment Your true passions will reveal to you your assignment. Your assignment is that which you are meant to accomplish with your life that few others will be able to do as well as you could. Every human being has the capability of expertise. What are your talents? What do you enjoy doing most? That could be your assignment. Start right NOW!
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Life is lived in the now. Most people‟s undoing is that they live either in the past or in the future and experience very little of the now. The company that you‟ve always dreamed of founding, start it right now! That song that you always wanted to compose, write it right now! That incident that‟s been lingering in your mind for months, let it go right now! Transform your thinking Your thinking sets the pace for your doing. You can‟t experience greatness if you continue to think in the same manner that you have always thought. Don‟t allow yourself to get stuck in the rut of bad or poor thinking. Elevate your thinking by associating with good thinkers. Identify your strengths Winners play to their strengths. if you are going to be massively successful in life you have to start that journey of identifying your strengths. As you do this you will definitely uncover some opportunities for improvement in many areas of your life. Strengthen your areas that need improvement and you are well on your way to a great destiny. Notify key personnel You need a circle of support around you that will motivate, support and keep you accountable. Share your dreams with them. They may be the key to your ability to move to the next level. Find trusted people who will become your inner circle of confidence. Never under-estimate the power of your close associates. Yoke with thought leaders Someone once said that who you become five years from today is determined by the books you read and the company you keep. Yoke yourself with thought leaders. This can easily be done by reading their books and listening to recordings of them speaking. The habit of listening to thought leaders is the key to learning.
So, what’s next? Plotting your destiny is the first step towards living a more meaningful life. Once you have done this, you have to PLAN AHEAD. I learnt about the need to PLAN AHEAD from the works of John Maxwell. Here are some thoughts on what has kept me on
track with my personal goals over the past seven years: Pre-determine a course of action This essentially means having a vision for your life. Visualizing that which you intend to attain is the first step towards being successful in pursuing it. You need to have a concise end for which you can measure your progress against. Develop a vision which will be your pre-determined course of action. Layout your goals Once you have pre-determined a course of action, the next step is to break it down into specific goals that can be realized. To empower your vision you need to write it down and define it clearly. Laying out your goals enables you to harness the power of visualization. Adjust your priorities You will need to make some changes in the new year if you hope to make it a different year from the past. This will mean being open to adjusting your priorities. Priorities are the pathway to success. Making adjustments is the key to reaching your goals. Notify key people We all have circles of support around us. In order to accomplish your goals you need to find those people who affirm your positive goals and share your goals with them. These people will encourage you, motivate you and keep you on the path towards success. Allow time for your plans Many times when we set goals we expect them to be realized within a certain time frame. While it is essential to set deadlines, we should never get married to the deadlines. Timelines should motivate us to work smartly towards our goals. If your goals are not attained within the timelines you set, don‟t quit. Set new timelines and stay motivated. Head into action Action is the first step towards achievement. A journey of a thousand miles begins with the first step. Head into action. Inch by inch it‟s a cinch. Action must start now! The greatest enemy of success is procrastination. In order to achieve your dreams you must be action-oriented. Expect problems Every endeavor that has ever been worth pursuing has always had it‟s problems and challenges. Problems are a sign that you are on the right track. The absence of problems is very likely a sign that something is wrong. Problems should never cause you to lose sight of your ultimate goals. They should be a call towards being more creative. Always point to your successes It is easy to lose motivation when failure sets in. The key to staying focused is in pointing to your already realized successes. Your track record of past successes is
the springboard for your future achievements. When failure threatens your progress, embrace the confidence that comes from your record of past achievements. Daily review your planning Planning is a dynamic process. Plans should be reviewed on a daily basis to ensure that you are on the right track. Change happens and you must be open to changing your plans daily. Flexibility is the key to success. You must be able to revisit your plans every day. Nothing ever dominates life unless it happens daily. It is the daily habit of reviewing your plans that will determine whether you realize them or not. To read more about keys to living a better life, go to http://hermanjnajoli.com. To learn more about Herman Jumba Najoli and the Better Life Company, visit the website at: http://www.betterlifecompany.com. Regain Control Five warning signs that your life is spiraling out of control:
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Instead of getting the newspaper or mail yourself, you send your dog to fetch them. You‟ve been known to text message your kids asking them to pass you the salt and condiments during dinner. Given your habit of eating fast food, you haven‟t had the time to clean all those paper cups and wrappers that have been piling up in your car for two years. You are seen speeding down the Interstate as you apply make-up, floss your teeth and read the morning newspaper – all at the same time. You ask your spouse to pass you the remote on top of the TV while you lounge on the couch with a bag of chips in hand.
It‟s true that our quality of life is regressing even as man makes many advances in science and technology. We seem to have all these gadgets that are designed to make life easier yet we seem to be more confused than ever. A couple of days ago I got a unique card from a friend who is really into personal development. What caught my attention first was it‟s title: Follow Your Destiny, Wherever It Leads You! This title was powerful to me because that very same morning I had written in my blog about “Plotting Your Destiny“. What a coincidence that I would receive a card along the same lines on the same day! This act of providence sent me a great message which was solidified even more when I read some of the words on the inside. I think we can use this message in regaining control. Here‟s part of what it said: “ There comes a time in your life when you realize that if you stand still, you will remain at this point forever. You realize that if you fall and stay down, life will pass you by” This was huge for me because I am just at that point when I have made a decision to take a leap of faith in my personal life. My decision to leave a rewarding job where I am adding value to at-risk youth so that I could start my organization in which I could potentially multiply value to society is an attempt to plot my destiny. The card went on to say: “ Rather than wondering about or questioning the direction your life has taken, accept the fact that there is a path before you now. Shake off the “why‟s” and “what if‟s” and rid yourself of confusion. Whatever was - is in the past. Whatever is - is what‟s important. The past is a brief reflection. The future is yet to be realized. Today is
here.” What a beautiful message! This card cemented for me the truth that we are engineered for greatness. We were born for accomplishment. The key to greatness is in being able to seize every single day and utlizing every single opportunity life offers you to live up to your full potential. Summary Don‟t let your life spiral out-of-control. You were designed for accomplishment and engineered for greatness! Best of luck :-) To read more about making every day the best day of your life, go to: http://www.hermanjnajoli.com/ Book Review BOOK REVIEW The Road to Arrival: Ten Empowering Principles for Actualizing Your Dreams By Herman Jumba Najoli (Better Life Publishing, 2002) In The Road to Arrival, Kenyan author Herman Najoli slices through the façade of apparent mediocrity by unearthing ten empowering principles for actualizing yoru dreams and living a better life. According to Herman, these principles will enable people to avoid procrastination and get on the road towards their dreams.Drawing upon his study of people who lived their dreams, Herman offers biblically backed insights on the power of faith, associations, detachment, perseverance, faithfulness, character, integrity, diligence, the tongue and challenges you to pursue and get connected with your dreams. Keen application of insight and a talent for simplifying complexity allow him to show how pursuing your dreams can lead to a better life. From the man who has also authored, Quest for Light and Battling for Your Prophetic Destiny, perhaps it comes as no surprise that Herman Najoli writes with deep insight and a focus on empowering his readers. Rather than high-flown and untested ideals, The Road to Arrival gives sensible, down-to-earth guidance. Herman‟s understanding of the keys to living a better life enables him to boil down a topic that has a wide scope into simple, straightforward advice. An astute student of successful lives, Herman educates the reader with salient examples from a Biblical perspective such as how Joseph‟s character enabled him to realize his dreams and how Elisha pursued the dream of succeeding Elijah. Unfortunately, Herman‟s wisdom is shrouded by a slightly mechanical style of writing, which relies heavily on scripture. Herman quotes the Bible a lot in his book. A wealth of insight gives the book force, but anyone who does not subscribe to a Judeo-Christian worldview would have a hard time following Herman‟s thinking. Nonetheless, The Road to Arrival does abound with practical advice. BLOOM subscribers would be wise to dig into Chapter 3 to learn the power of detachment and Chapter 7 for the power of diligence. Both chapters describe indispensable skills for qualities that easily led to the achievement of one‟s personal desires. In Chapter 9, Herman‟s penchant for application reminds the leader of the vital necessity for pursuing that which reveals “the true you”. Chapter 10 is a remarkably well-written appeal for every human being to get connected to their destiny.
While the lessons of The Road to Arrival hold true for every human being, its appeal will likely be greatest among those who are committed to developing themselves and pursuing a better life. Having worked extensively with youth, Herman views better life from the perch of developing the spirit. His brilliant, insightful thoughts and big-picture focus address the needs of people that are just developing a philosophy about life. The Road to Arrival is highly recommended as a deeply thought-out guide for realizing your dreams. Herman Najoli draws from a deep well of divine insight to present his findings on the principles that lead to the actualization of personal dreams. By connecting his ten principles to everyday life, Herman puts forth credible tenets rather than conjecture. Readers will be rewarded with an abundance of knowledge for investing their time in The Road to Arrival.
Quotes Dreams and Better Life “ Hold fast to dreams, for if dreams die, life is a broken winged bird that cannot fly.” ~ Langston Hughes “Don‟t let life discourage you: everyone who got where he is had to begin where he was.” ~ Richard L. Evans “Go confidently in the direction of your dreams. Live the life you have imagined.” ~ Henry David Thoreau Contacting Us For more information on Herman Jumba Najoli, MA, please visit our website by clicking here. In our effort to become your new content provider, portions of BLOOM are often written by editors other than Herman Jumba Najoli and do not necessarily reflect his opinions. BLOOM is available via e-mail on a free subscription basis. You can subscribe by sending an email to Subscriptions. Questions about document transmission or editorial comments? Contact Feedback@BETTERLIFECOMPANY.com. Visitors may use the information contained in this e-newsletter by placing the following credit line: "This article is used by permission from Herman Jumba Najoli's free monthly enewsletter 'BLOOM' available at www.betterlifecompany.com. " This information cannot be used for resale in any manner. Copyright © 2010, BETTERLIFECOMPANY® BETTER LIFE COMPANY, Inc. www.betterlifecompany.com
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