IDEAS™

Every Invention and breakthroughs in our world today is as a result of someone’s idea! Ideas are indeed the seedlings of Success. Midge Dector says “Ideas are powerful things, requiring not a studious contemplation but an action, even if it is only an inner action.”

Let’s take our time to go through the following; it will sure help us to appreciate the value of ideas.

The refrigerator we see today is the idea of John Standard and Baltzar Von Platen. If not for Fredrick Jones, our homes and offices are likely to still be poorly ventilated, his idea gave birth to the Air Conditioner, and Alice Parker’s idea led to the invention of the Heating Furnace. Gas Turbine is the idea of Aurel Stodola

How will the world be without electricity? Alessandro Volta’s Idea was one of the Ideas that gave birth to Electricity and Otto Balthy’s Idea gave the world the Transformer. It was Thomas Edison’s idea that gave birth to the Incandescent electric Bulb; it helps in the illumination of our houses and offices. Lewis Latimer and Michael Harvey are not left out because their ideas also brought The Electric Lamp and The Lantern respectively. The Automatic Cut off Switch was Granville T. Wood’s Idea.

How stressful and time consuming would it have been climbing staircases in a skyscraper? Alexander Mils idea made it possible for us to get to any floor in a skyscraper within record time, he invented the elevator. Maybe without his idea, there will be no city with skyscrapers.

Someone’s idea led to the invention of Cars, Infact it was Karl Benz’s Idea that gave birth to the petrol-powered Automobile. And I guess there would have been fewer cars if not for the idea of Richard Spikes who invented the Automatic Gearshift. With a lot of cars on the street orderliness became a problem but Garrett A. Morgan’s idea brought the Traffic Light Signals which brought orderliness on our streets and Charles Brook’s idea made it easy to keep the streets clean, he invented the Street Sweeper.

Orville and Wilbur Wright’s idea led to the invention of the aero plane. Helicopter was the idea of Igor Sikorsky and Arthur M. Young. Joseph Gambol’s idea brought The Super Charge System for Internal Combustion Engines. Graham Bells idea made communication to be easy, his idea led to the invention of the Telephone. Submarine and Trains are all people’s idea. The radio that we listen to today is the idea of Edwin H Armstrong and Guglielmo Marconi. Philo Farnsworth and John Logie Baird ideas gave birth to the Television set.

What about the book that you are reading? If not for the idea of W.A Love it would have been difficult printing books, his idea led to the invention of the Advance Printing Press and Lee Barrage idea brought the Type writing Machine. Williams Purveys’s idea brought the Fountain Pen.

Clothes, Shoes, Belt, Caps are all people’s ideas. George T. Samon and Sarah Boone’s idea made our laundry work easy; they invented the Clothes Dryer and Ironing Board respectively. The blue jean that we wear is the idea of Levi Strauss.

Our Educational System, Banking System, Democracy and all sporting games are the ideas of people. Someone’s idea gave birth to them. If not for someone’s idea trade by batter will still be in existence. You know how tedious it would have been transacting business.

No matter how weird the idea that is popping up in your mind might be…take time to nurse them, give it all the support that it needs, it might likely turnout to be one of the idea that will contribute to the advancement of the human race. Walt Elias Disney’s Advice is “Get a good idea and stay with it. Dog it, and work at it until it's done right.” And I add, if you are convinced that your idea can work, work on it until it works.

En-route success unlimited™, we know that;

“We get new ideas from God every hour of our day when we put our trust in Him -- but we have to follow that inspiration up with perspiration -- we have to work to prove our faith. Remember that the bee that hangs around the hive never gets any honey."

     -Albert E. Cliffe

“Congealed thinking is the forerunner of failure... make sure you are always receptive to new ideas."

  - George Crane

By, Solomon O’chucks Nwokoro.

Motivational cum Inspirational Speaker.

Phone: +234~802~850~9077, 809~850~9077

e-mail: enroutesuccessunlimited@gmail.com

http://www.enroutesuccess.org

http://www.enroutesuccessunlimited.blogspot.com

© 2011son

START FROM THE SCRATCH™

I remember the words of one of my Calculus Lecturers; he said “If you want to become a good mathematician, you must always start from the first principle whenever you’re solving any mathematical problem.” I gained a lot of wisdom from that. Success requires that you must start pursuing your goals, and starting means that you must begin from somewhere. And my own advice is that you must be humble enough to start from the scratch if you desire success. I mean success that will last long.

If you want to begin the journey of a thousand miles, wisdom tells us that we must begin with a step. One step at a time will always take you to your desired destination. Someone once said that you can never take a giant leap to success, its   takes one step at a time.

Apple Computers is one good example of starting from the scratch. Read the words of Steve Job the CEO of Apple Computer and Pixar Animation Studios when he was addressing a graduating class of a college. “I was lucky — I found what I loved to do early in life. Woz and I started Apple in my parents’ garage when I was 20. We worked hard, and in 10 years Apple had grown from just the two of us in a garage into a $2 billion company with over 4000 employees.”

A company that started in the garage growing to becoming a multinational, it’s an indication that every idea has unlimited potentials to grow beyond ones imagination including your idea that seems weird to some people.

Some people find it difficult to believe that a seed is a forest or a plantation; it takes someone with fore sight to believe it. The absolute truth is that inside every seed lies a forest or a plantation. Look at it from this angle, when you plant a seed of mango, and it grows to become a tree filled with mangoes, and you harvest the mangoes and re-plant the seeds again, if you continue to re-plant the seeds after every harvest, with time you would have succeeded in raising a plantation, that’s how most successful empires are built.

If you have discovered your dreams and calling in life, don’t wait for a perfect condition before you start going after your dreams because if you must wait for a perfect condition, then you must be prepare to wait till eternity. The truth is that there is no perfect condition. Learn to start from the scratch. Success requires that you start from the scratch. Never mind your imperfect steps, just keep taking those imperfect steps with time they will become perfect. Beside practice makes perfect.

Starting from the scratch might not be easy especially when you have a very big dream. But you don’t have any option order than to start from the scratch. Remember every successful empire that you see around you today no matter how big they may be started from the scratch. Microsoft started from the scratch. Bill Gate started Microsoft with just an idea and presently Bill Gate remains one of the richest men in the world.

You can become whatever you want to become if only you will be willing to move out of your comfort zone and take the bold step of going after your dreams. Start from the scratch, don’t allow those great ideas to die in the womb, take one step at a time, it will sure take you to your dream world. You will sure get there!

En-route success unlimited™, we know that;

"Success is the sum of small efforts, repeated day in and day out..."

                                                                                     - Robert J. Collier

"Don't be afraid to give your best to what seemingly are small jobs. Every time you conquer one it makes you that much stronger. If you do the little jobs well, the big ones tend to take care of themselves."

                                                                                    - Dale Carnegie

STRENGTH FROM STRUGGLES™

One day, a small opening appeared on a cocoon. A man sat and watched the butterfly for several hours as it struggled to force its body through that little hole.

Then it seems to stop making any progress. It appeared as if it had gotten as far as it could and it could not go any further.

So the man decided to help the butterfly; he took a pair of scissors and opened the cocoon.

The butterfly then emerged easily; but it had a withered body; it was tiny and shriveled wings.

The man continued to watch because he expected that at any moment, the wings would open enlarge and expand, to be able to support the butterfly’s body, and become firm. Neither happened!

In fact, the butterfly spent the rest of its life crawling around with a withered body and shrivelled wings. It never was able to fly.

What the man in his kindness and goodwill did not understand was that the restricting cocoon and the struggle required for the butterfly to get through the tiny opening, were God’s way of forcing fluid from the body of the butterfly into its wings, so that it would be ready for flight once it achieved its freedom from the cocoon.

Most often struggles are some of the basic ingredient that we need in our life to succeed.

If God allowed us to go through our life without any obstacles, it would cripple us. We would not be as strong as we could have been. Never being able to fly.

“I ask for strength and God gave me difficulties to make me strong.

I asked for Wisdom and God gave me problems to solve.

I asked for prosperity and God gave me a Brain and Brawn to work.

I asked for courage and God gave me obstacles to overcome.

I asked for love and God gave me troubled people to help.

I asked for favors and God gave me opportunities.

I received nothing I wanted but I received everything I needed.”

                                                                                   - Author Unknown.

Every form of success achieved in this life comes after a struggle. If there were no form of struggles in life, everybody might as well become successful but it is this struggle that differentiate the successful from the unsuccessful.

Les Brown once said that “Many of us act as if we were born with the great expectation that life was going to be easy. Well, if someone told you life was going to be one smooth, easy ride, I’ve got a special announcement! THEY LIED!”

Smooth sail doesn’t make a skilled sailor; success comes to those who overcome some form of obstacles to be able to reach their targets.

It’s necessary to apply your brains and brawns if you must achieve success in life. No matter how easy you may see some people succeed, deep down within them, they know the form of internal and external struggle that they scaled through to achieve their success.

If you don’t pass through some form of struggle to get success, the chances are that you won’t value it. Struggles develop your character, and it’s your character that determines how long you will remain successful.

Remember, an electric current will follow the line of least resistance, but the truth is that a light bulb glows precisely because there is resistance. Even the lion that is the king of the jungle will always struggle to get its meal and there about still struggle to eat it, because it will still contend with the vultures and the flies that will always be around to partake in the meal.

Come to think of it life from birth to death is a series of endless struggles. So never run away from struggles, embrace it and you will see how success comes.

En-route success unlimited™, we know that;

“The strongest trees are not those in heavily protected forest, but the trees which stand in open spaces where they are in constant struggle with wind and all the element of weather.”

-          Napoleon Hill

“Struggle is a clever device through which Nature compels humanity to develop, expand and progress. It is either an ordeal or a magnificent experience, depending on one’s attitude toward it. Success is impossible – unthinkable even without it.”

                                                                               - Napoleon Hill

USE YOUR INITIATIVE™

Have you ever heard the story of the giant ship engine that failed? The ship's owners hired one expert after another, but none of them could figure out how to fix the engine. Then they brought in an old man who had been fixing ships since he was a youngster. He carried a large bag of tools with him, and when he arrived, he immediately went to work.

He inspected the engine very carefully, top to bottom. Two of the ship's owners were there, watching this man, hoping he would know what to do. After looking things over, the old man reached into his bag and pulled out a small hammer. He gently tapped something. Instantly, the engine lunched into life. He carefully put his hammer away. The engine was fixed!
After a week, the owners received a bill from the old man
for ten thousand dollars.” What?!" the owners exclaimed. "He hardly did
anything!"

So they wrote the old man a note saying, "Please send us an itemized bill."
This was the bill the man sent to them:

Tapping with a hammer ........................ $2.00
Knowing where to tap ........................ $9998.00
The message is very clear! Effort is important, but knowing where to make effort in life makes all the difference.

Many of the world’s successful people constantly program themselves so that they instinctively react to various situations in a manner that will provide them with the greatest possible benefits, just like the old man did in the story above.

You can become successful in your chosen field or whatsoever endeavor your find yourself if only you can learn how to make use of your initiatives. You will be ahead of your colleagues; they will look up to you for assistance, because you don’t rely on the status quo to get things done. You do things differently, tactically and with great speed.

Come to think of it, initiative is a special kind of action, it means doing something worthwhile without been told to do it. The person with initiative has a standing invitation to join the elite in every business and profession that he belongs.

Many people make life unnecessarily difficult for themselves by dissipating power and energy through fuming and fretting rather than making use of their initiatives.
It’s sad to realize the number of unsuccessful people who are hampered and made miserable just because they fail to make use of their initiatives to direct their lives towards success.

Initiatives will not only make you more effective, it will also save you huge amount of time, because you won’t have to reinvent the wheel, you can fine-tune it, reshape it and perhaps even make it better than it used to be.

Remember, one of the keys to success unlimited is making use of your initiatives. It allows you to grow and take necessary action to make your life and the lives of those around you worth living.
We have that same key at our disposal every moment of the day, at any moment we can make use of it to shape our destinies and to make sure that we are going where we want to go to in life.

En-route success unlimited™, we know that;

“There are four types of people in the world; those who watch things happen, those who let things happen, those who ask what happened and those who make things happen.”
- Myles Munroe

“If the only tool you have is a hammer, you tend to see every problem as a nail! The more varied tools you keep in the toolbox of your mind, the more innovative ways you will possess to solve problems.”
-Abraham Maslow

GO BEYOND THE STATUS-QUO™

Have you ever heard the story of the impossibility of running a mile in less than four minutes? Several years ago, people believed that no man born of a woman has the strength and speed to run a mile in less than four minutes. Infact history has it that people went as far as drinking tiger’s milk and the Greeks even use lion to increase the speed of the runners so that they can break the record, but to no avail. They came to a conclusion after they have done all that was possible, but still could not break the record that it is impossible to run the mile in less than four minutes.

In 1954, a Physician called Roger Banister believed that he can run a mile in less than four minute. He refused to settle down for the status quo of the day. He ran the mile in less than four minute; he set a record of running the mile in 3:59:4 minutes. Roger Banister challenged the status quo and he indeed set the pace for people to believe that they can run the mile in less than 4 minute, and a lot of people have done just that after then.

Too often in life, we settle for less than we truly deserve, we settle for less than the best, we settle into a set way of thinking and accept limitations that need not be placed upon us. We help maintain the status quo. You can hardly become a champion in anything if you chose to settle for the status quo.

Psychiatrists say that there are only two fears that we are born with. One is the fear of falling and the other is the fear of loud sound. All other fears are learned. The fear of going beyond the status quo is a learned fear, we allow the society that we live in to determine how successful we can be. Remember the society can stop you temporarily, but you are the only one who has the sole right to stop yourself permanently.

For civilization to continue, people must be willing to break the status quo ante. Bill Clinton during one of his address to the American people said that “I have news for the forces of greed and the defenders of the status quo: your time has come -- and gone. It's time for change in America” change is the only thing that is constant in life, so never nurse the thought that some things must remain the way they are. Paul Weyrich says “We are different from previous generations of conservatives. We are no longer working to preserve the status quo. We are radicals, working to overturn the present power structure of this country.” And that is exactly what it means to progress as a nation or people.

Overtime we have heard of how experts and professionals established reasons why some things can not be changed but some people neglect their facts and establish a new order. Wilbur and Orville Wright did it, Christopher Columbus did it. Roger Banister did and a lot of people have done it. You can do it too.

Never allow anybody to place limits on your potentials and don’t tell anybody that they can’t. Learn to encourage people, tell them that they can do it. The truth is that you can do all things. One of my favourite quotes from the Bible is “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” – Philippians 4:9 indeed not even the status quo or any established order can stop me from maximizing my potentials.

Laurence J. Peter is reported to have said that “Bureaucracy defends the status quo long past the time when the quo has lost its status.” Don’t be overwhelmed by any established order. You have all what it takes to prove that the world is wrong. Funny enough many people accept the status quo and never reach their true potentials. Remember the noise of the sea will not stop the fish from sleeping.

For you to get to where you are supposed to be in life and have the desires of your heart, you have to get beyond the status quo. Your biggest challenge is to break the status quo at your prospects if indeed you want to set a new record here on earth. Your ability to trust yourself, to test your limits is the courage to succeed.

En-route success unlimited™, we know that;

“According to aerodynamic laws, the bumblebee cannot fly. Its body weight is not the right proportion to its wingspan, ignoring these laws, the bee flies anyway.”

- M. Sainer- Lagu

“What are a person’s capabilities? No one knows. Therefore, no one should be consciously instilling life-limiting thoughts into others.”

- John C. Maxwell.

THE INCURABLE OPTIMIST™

Too often in life we give up on our dreams when faced with difficulties just because we believe that the barriers that stand against us are insurmountable. We resign to fate. The truth is that our optimism can actually give us the results that we want from life.

If you are an incurable optimist, doors that seems to be shut forever to those who are not will be opening for you like magic in their very eyes. You will live your life in such a way that you only think of the best for yourself and others. And you always expect the best from life.

Jesus Christ the greatest teacher of all time said “If you can believe, all things are possible to him who believes.” –Mark 9:23.

Indeed all things are possible to him that believes. Optimism will always give you what you desire. Every successful person that you see around you is an optimist; for sure pessimists hardly become successful because they are not believers.

There are certain doors of opportunities that can only be opened for the optimist. Optimism always pays a long term dividends. You can not be an optimist and still be a failure.

If you must succeed, you must first believe that you've been blessed with all it takes to be successful, and for sure you will be successful. Besides you must first become your first believer before any body can believe in you.

The incurable optimist never sees an end to the quest for success without achieving the success they desire. What looks like an end is a bend to them. That is the main reason why they are successful.

The incurable optimists don’t necessarily need to see any sign before they believe. They know that there is always a bright shinning light at the end of every tunnel. They know that the sun will always shine after the rain.

In the greater scheme of things don’t you think that positive mental attitude will produce positive impact in your life just as negative mental attitude will produce negative impact? I feel that is the way things work.

You as an individual have the sole right over your belief system. You alone can choose what you would want to believe, but I can assure you that if you are positive about life, if you can always see the good side in what the average person will see bad, if you can live life without complaining, you are on your way to high level success.

No matter how fantastic your plans, goals and dreams might be, if you are a pessimist, you can hardly succeed, remember, one of the secret of success in life is for a man to believe that he has all what it takes to succeed and he will sure succeed.

En-route Success unlimited™, we know that;

“The Optimist sees opportunity in every danger; the pessimist sees danger in every opportunity.”

- Winston Churchill

“The world today admires and adores Martin Luther King Jr., not because of his eloquence or oratory skills nor because of his martyrdom. He is celebrated, I believe because of his vision of the possibility of total freedom and liberation for his black people and ultimately, for the entire nation.”

- E.S. Etuk PhD.

EN – ROUTE SUCCESS UNLIMITED™

As you travel through life there are always those times when decisions just have to be made; when the choices are hard, and solutions seems scarce and the rain seems to soak your parade!

There are some situations where all you can do is to simply let go and move on, gather courage together and choose a direction that carries you towards a new dawn.

So pack up your troubles and take a step forward. The process of change can be tough but think about all the excitement ahead if you can be stalwart enough!

There could be adventures you never imagined just waiting around the next bend and wishes and dreams just about to come true in ways you can’t comprehend!

Perhaps you’ll find friendships that spring from new interests as you challenge your status quo and learn there are so many options in life and so many ways you can grow.

Perhaps you’ll go to places you never expected and see things that you’ve never seen, or travel to fabulous, faraway worlds and wonderful spots in between.

Perhaps you’ll find warmth and affection and caring – a “somebody special” who’s there to help you stay centered and listens with interest to stories and feelings of your shame.

Perhaps you’ll find comfort in knowing your friends are supportive of all that you do and believe that whatever decisions you make, they’ll be the right choices for you!

So keep putting one foot in front of the other and taking your life day by day. There’s a brighter tomorrow that’s just down the road.

Don’t look back!!! You’re not going that way!

Author Unknown

Success is a journey whose route is always under construction, and its destination can not be defined with a single word or phrase. Success is indeed unlimited. As mortal, you can not attain the peak of success, just as perfection can not be attained in this terrestrial world.

When you are transformed from mortality to immortality; from terrestrial to celestial, there and then you can think of getting to the peak of success. But as long as we live here on planet earth, as long as we still go about with flesh and blood, we will always strive not just to break or equals people’s record, but also to break our own records.

An Economic principle states that “Human needs are insatiable”. It’s a fact because people often wonder why many millionaires or even billionaires will keep accumulating wealth despite the fact that what they have is more than enough to carter for their children, even to the fourth generation and beyond.

Whether you believe it or not, Success is indeed unlimited because it doesn’t have a standard of measurement. So never compare the success you have now with the success of others.

The easiest way to live a satisfied life is to determine your life goal, chart a course and navigate towards your goal at your own pace.

Remember success is not what you have achieved in comparison to what someone else has achieved, but what you have achieved compared to the goals you’ve set for yourself.

So be strong, be courageous and be passionate as you travel en-route success unlimited. Never settle down when you’ve achieved some form of success, because before you know it, your feat today may likely become obsolete tomorrow. Keep striving, use success as a spring board to achieve greater success, take one step at a time – not one step forward and two steps backward.

Today is a new day, a new beginning for your quest en-route success unlimited! With determination and discipline, you will be highly amazed at how much progress you’ll make. Commit yourself to it! Go for it! Because you can never walk backward into the future!

En-route Success Unlimited™, we know that;

“Every Compliment sets the stage for another improvement.

Every Accomplishment sets the gage for a higher measurement.

Every achievement turns the page for another treasure hunt.”

-Dr. TL Osborn.

“Forward, as occasion offers. Never look round to see whether any shall note it.... Be satisfied with success in even the smallest matter, and think that even such a result is no trifle.”

- Marcus Aurelius Antoninus.