Belief is the starting point of all human achievement. The belief that you can achieve something, quickens your nerves, strengthen your muscles and empowers you to get it done. But doubt weakens a person’s ability and discourages a person from attempting to achieve one’s aim.
Years ago, many medical experts warned athletes the danger of running a mile in four minutes. They said it was impossible and any attempt to do so could result to grave consequences for the athlete. Hundreds of articles were written on this and as a result people never bothered try. But along came a lanky English medical student who did not like he could run a mile. This athlete, for the first time, set the record by running a mile in four minutes. When asked why people could not run a mile in four minutes, he replied that it was probably because people never believed it could be done. Subsequent performance by other athletes proved that he was right. Many athletes who came after him re-enacted that feat, because having heard that someone did it, that strengthen their belief that they also could do so.
In fact, the latest athlete that achieved this feat is the Moroccan athlete, El-Guerouj. El-Guerouj even did better by running a mile in less than four minutes!
The bottom-line here is that before success is achieved, before a record is set or broken, the achiever must first believe that he can do it. To succeed without first believing that you can make it is a physical impossibility. Belief is the foundation upon which success is built is built. If the foundation is not there, success cannot be built. As the lawyers used to say, “You cannot built on nothing.”
Belief is a spiritual principle endorsed by the Master, Jesus. He said: “If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth.” This is the underlying principle behind our publication, the Conqueror. We believe that everything is possible to him who believes. We don’t believe in impossibility. We believe in possibility. And as we believe in possibility, so it is with us. All things (not some things) are possible to him that believes.
When you say: “I am more than a conqueror” and you believe it in your heart, nothing can defeat you. No Jupiter can stand your way. The world will stand aside to let you pass if you believe in yourself and your ability.
Belief is the basis of all breakthroughs in scientific and technological invention. History is replete with inventor whose master plans were thought to be an impossibility by people and even by experts, but who executed their master plan to the letter and came up with their inventions. When Graham Bell set out to invent the telephone, people laughed at him and gave him no chance of succeeding. They never believed that any invention can be made that would enable two persons living in distant locations, towns, cities, countries and continents, to communicate with each other in spite of the distance between them. But Bell believed in himself that he could bring the concept of telephone into reality and he did. The telephone you are enjoying today is a product of belief.
For Marconi, who invented the radio, his plan to design an invention that will enable messages to be transmitted and received over a long distance made people to see him as insane. His friends requested that he be taken to the lunatic. Marconi proved them wrong! He did invent the radio! Radio will continue to be the most popular electronic media the world over.
When Gustave Leven set out to establish his sparkling water business, some consulting firm did not believe water could be packaged and sold in the US. “You are foolish to try to sell sparkling water in the land of Coca-Cola drinkers,” said the consultants. Leven ignored the experts and launched Perrrier Company. The company is still thriving and many have copid his model.
Many years ago, many people never believed that packaged water business would thrive in Nigeria, but today, packaged water is a lucrative business in Nigeria.
It takes strong belief to whip discouragement, doubt and frustration. People will always say it is impossible. Experts may attack your business plan and say it is not feasible. The fact is, things will always look impossible or difficult as long as it is not yet achieved. Don’t wait for things to look feasible before you embark on achieving it. What determines the outcome of any venture is your belief, not other people’s belief and opinion. You can succeed if no one believes in you, but you cannot succeed if you don’t believe in yourself. So, what stands between you and success is your belief. Beware of the opinion of experts. The problem with experts is that they give their opinion based on precedent (previous knowledge and experience). If a concept emerges and that concept does not tally with previous or present ways of doing things, experts would kick against it. That was what transpired between Henry Ford and his team of engineers. Ford asked his engineers to produce a V8 engine. Before then, no such motor engine had ever been made. Seeing that there was no existing model to rely on or to pattern their design after, they told Ford bluntly that the V8 engine was an impossibility. Ford ignored their answer and asked them to go and produce the V8 engine. After few days, they returned and told Ford that they could not do it. Ford insisted on getting it done. When they saw that their jobs were on the line, they went back to the workshop and worked at producing the engine. Shortly after, they produced it. Ford believed it could be done. His engineers said it was impossible. Ford won. Between you and the experts and between you and the people, he person that wins is the person that believes. To the man who believes, everything is possible. You don’t need an astrologer, fortune teller, or soothsayer to foretell whether you will succeed or not. Your destiny is in your hands. That destiny is anchored on what you believe you can achieve. What you believe you can become is what you can achieve.
Getting Prepared for Success
The following steps must be taken to achieve outstanding success in life –
A. Be Creative
Your mind is given to you by the creator to help you think your way to success, victory, and prosperity. The mind is the basis of all accomplishment. Think of it. All the scientific and technological inventions - car, TV, computer, aeroplane, skyscraper, machinery, vessel, clothing, etc, are products of the imagination (mind).some people sat down to conceive the ideas, plan, and invent these products.
The fact is, there is nothing you conceive in your mind that you cannot achieve. There is no problem that confronts you today that you cannot overcome by the help of your mind. The problem with many of us is that we find it difficult to sit down and think creatively. We expect other people to do our thinking for us. It is high time you started thinking creatively. That is where success emanates. To think creatively, practise the following exercises –
1. Look for a quiet place where you can sit or lie down alone.
2. Have a pen and jotter or sheet of paper.
3. Sit down or lie down quietly.
4. For 30 or 60 minutes every day, ask your mind to offer solutions to your problems. If, for instance, you want to start a business of your own and you don’t actually know which type of business to embark upon, just ask yourself questions like –
• What lucrative business can I invest in?
• What business do I have passion for?
• What business would be convenient for me and yet earn me huge income constantly?
• What do the people need that I can supply them in return for money?
Throw these questions several times in your mind. After that, sit or lie down calmly. Allow your mind to wander aimlessly. Soon, it will start bringing to your conscious mind many ideas.
• When ideas start occurring to you, start writing them down. For now, do not discard any of these ideas. Just write them down. Again, as you go about your daily chores, ideas will prop up in your mind. Just write them down. Later, you can sit down and read through your jottings to select the business ideas you can start with.
• If you are practising this exercise for the first time and you don’t seem to get positive result, don’t give up. Just continue with the practice. It works. It is a time-tested principle. You even practice it unconsciously, though you may not realise its importance.
B. Deal With Discouragement
Once you have come up with an idea, be ready to confront your number one enemy – discouragement. Your task of dealing with discouragement becomes even higher if your idea is unique, one that has never been implemented by any person.
Discouragement can be avoided by refusing to announce your business plan until you have achieved it. But where you have already announced your plan, then you must fortify yourself against discouragement. The way to do this is to ignore negative remarks from people. Develop thick skin. Follow your own mind. The more the discouragement, the more the effort you should keep exerting towards achieving your goal.
C. Affirm Your Ability
Don’t be scared to set high goals for yourself. You have got what it takes to achieve any goal you set for yourself. Use the power of the tongue to fortify yourself. Affirm the positive. Affirm your ability to accomplish your goal. Say to yourself: “I have got what it takes to set up my business, manage it, and build a business empire out of it. Repeat it to yourself at least ten times every day to subdue any discouragement within you.
D. Hold on to Your Belief
You cannot achieve your goal if you lose confidence in your ability to achieve it. The fact that you have not achieved your goal today does not mean that you cannot achieve it tomorrow. The fact that it looks impossible does not mean that it is impossible. Nothing is impossible on this earth for any person who believes he can. You only need to persevere. Never lose hope. Never despair. Keep on trying. One more effort and behold, you are there! That is what it takes to be a conqueror.
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