The new year we were all waiting for is here now and the question is, what are we going to do to achieve or step into our next level in 2016?
In pursuit of our stepping into our next Level, we have the responsibility to ensure that everything we do drives us to that desired future. It is our duty to embrace time and let it be our best friend in our journey to the next level.
‘Stepping into your next level can only be a reality when you acknowledge the power in your hands to change the way you approach things regarding your future. One thing I have personally learnt over the years is not to have the attitude of procrastination – putting things off.
Developing the right attitude is everything you need to be able to overcome the limitations of life. Ziz Ziglar once said that ‘others can stop you temporarily, but you are the one who can stop yourself permanently’. This means that situations will try to limit your progress in life, but develop the right attitude of not giving up in the midst of it all; then you can overcome those limits and get to your destiny.
In fact, what differentiates a successful person from a failure is that, successful individuals have the ability to recognise what, when, where, why and how to do something to add value to people around them. A failure on the other hand may not even acknowledge that time is ticking off, but leave everything to time and chance.
Whatever and wherever you may want to get, you have the power to get there through the grace of God, available to all mankind. Until you begin to take some action to fight any form of procrastination, this habit will only steal your opportunities, damage your career and pride or destroy your relationships and ministries.
‘Procrastination is the thief of time’ – Edward Young
The way things are going in the world today and the pressure to meet all demands may pose problems, especially family lives, college works, business meetings to attend, and others are likely to drive you into the habit of procrastination. You may be giving excuses like ‘I am waiting for the right time’ or ‘I am not in the right mood’. These are signs of procrastination which you need to check and avoid.
Many people have their own reasons for procrastination, so you need to examine yourself to see what makes you feel lazy when it s time to do something very important. These habits can be in the form of lack of clear goals, underestimating the difficulty of tasks and not being aware of the time required to complete them. One of the main reasons people tend to procrastinate is that they do not have a clear understanding of a particular task, and sometimes think it has been imposed on them by somebody. Often the fear of failure or of success is the reason people are limited in getting to their desired destiny.
‘You may delay, but time will not’ – Benjamin Franklin
We read in proverbs 6:7 that the ants have no leaders or instructors to push them into greatness. That is, they have to motivate themselves (‘It has no commander, overseer, or ruler’). What is motivating you in life? What is your motivation in studying, working or serving God? Are you doing it because you think you have to do it? Do you do what you do because someone told you to?
What is driving you to do what you are doing in the first place? Let your motivation come from inside you as you read the word of God and not from the outside, to please men.
You may not be appreciated for what you may be doing in your employment, school, university, church, house or among the family, but you need to motivate yourself to keep the faith and press on to the prize awaiting for you. Your salary may have been delayed by your boss, but as you are motivated to work hard and smartly, you will begin to see that you are progressing in life because what the enemy meant for evil, God will turn to your favour.
2. PLAN AHEAD
Planning ahead is one of the ladders you need to overcome procrastination. It can help organize your day and your busy schedule. To be able to be all that the Lord has called you to be and get to your destiny, planning ahead is a great way to prioritize and schedule those events and activities in a strategic manner.
No matter how busy your life, work, family and children make you, you still need to plan ahead. Don’t wait until the last minute. Maybe you see others procrastinating until the last minute, and it makes you worry that things will never get done in time. Regardless of which of these profiles suits you, planning helps everyone work together while still getting everything done in a team.
Know that whatever you do now will not be in vain, no matter how silly or irrelevant it may seem to you. Maybe you are working part time in a restaurant, or maybe you are studying something that you think is unrelated to your course – whatever it may be, God can always make something good come out of it. You’ll learn something that you would never have thought before, without realizing it! Whatever it is, plan ahead.
3. BE DECISIVE
Every great leap forward in your life comes after you have made a clear decision of some kind. Decisiveness is about making a decision or a choice. A person who is decisive is able to make a clear distinction between options.
The ants made a decision to prepare and gather food at the right time. They searched for and discovered the right moment for them to get out of their nests and hiding places to search for what was needful and important to their destiny. They were not too lazy to get out from their so-called comfort zone. I am very sure that they were faced with fire and dangerous events which could have limited them from chasing their sure future. They were not hindered by the rocks, blocks, lizards, snakes and other things that could have posed a threat to them. The ants were fully determined to attain their destiny.
The choice you make on a daily basis affects what you will have, be or do in the tomorrows of your life.It is very important that you do not postpone decisions you need to make today for your family, children, job, marriage, relationship and your future, because it could have dire consequences future. Be decisive!
4. FOCUS ON YOUR ASSIGNMENT
Life is a journey which must be travelled with focus. You cannot get to your destination safely without focusing on the road to success. You cannot get to the mountain top without focus. The higher you climb the mountain of success, the more you need to train your mind to focus. A pilot or a driver cannot get his passengers to where he is going safely without remaining focused.
In my field of work, you cannot be a surgeon or a nurse undertaking the responsibility of caring for patients unless you focus on the particular patient allocated to you in the intensive care unit. This makes it clear that we all need the spirit of focus to enable us to overcome any limitations that may face us.
On the road to your destiny, you need to understand that there may be some obstacles and challenges. Jesus Christ and His disciples were faced with a severe storm (Mark 6:45-56), but they survived. This means that with the power of focus, you can achieve your dream. You only get to your destination or your future when you are willing to remain steadfast and focused. I have decoded the word FOCUS into two statements which really make sense.
Fight Obstacles Continuously Until you Succeed: Ferdinard Lawson
When you want to be a high achiever, you need to fight continuously until you succeed in life. When examining the movement an ant, we see that they all move in one direction irrespective of distraction.
Focusing on an assignment is very important in overcoming the habit of procrastination. We can observe that all ants focus on one thing, such as preparing and gathering food for the winter season. Are you equally focused on your God-given assignment? Remain focused and do not look at what is happening around you to distract you from getting to your destiny. You must search through yourself to see what threatens to take your focus away from your assignment.
Be like the ants and do not give up easily. Successful people are never satisfied with their current level of achievement, neither are they limited by any form of disability. No matter what terrain they are going through, the ants keep on carrying the food without ever giving up. The Lord is on their side and yours.
‘Success is a result of good decision making – failure is as a result of bad decision making’
5. DEVELOP A SPIRIT OF SELF-DISCIPLINE
I head Bishop Michael Hutton-Wood once say that ‘self discipline is the ability to make yourself do what you should do, when you should do it, whether you feel like it or not’. Developing a spirit of self-discipline is actually mastering your self-confidence, self-esteem and inner strength, to produce self satisfaction. It is sometimes said that people with lack of self-discipline often become failures. In view of this, it is possible to say that self-discipline is one of the ladders that will enable you to remain focused on your destiny.
When you look at the way an automobile works, its relies on its parts to be reliable. For example, you need the gearbox, clutch, brakes, wheels, headlights, hazard lights, just to mention a few to enable it to function. So it is also vital that you have self-discipline as a vital part in your life to be able to overcome any limitations before you. Self-discipline should be the fuel in your petrol tank to get you to your destiny.
This life is full challenges, and sometimes a challenge tends to distract your focus and purpose for a particular day. However, when you are disciplined enough to remain on track you will surely get to that place of fulfillment. Imagine travelling on a highway and coming across a number of lights indicating that you should reduce your speed. You do not change your mind about the journey but discipline yourself to continue it. The journey into your destiny will be limited by so many road works, traffic lights and sometimes other drivers pulling in front or across you, so it will take discipline to remain the driver you were when you first began the journey without getting upset and angry.
In my field of work I have seen this demonstrated when an individual decide to quit smoking or other health-related problem like drinking and drug addiction. It takes self-discipline to overcome them. Do not allow the flood of procrastination to creep into your life or take you by surprise. Use these ladders to overcome the tsunami of procrastination. You can do it.
‘Discipline is the power that fuels the systems that LEAD you to larger goals.’ (unknown)
6. LET THE WORD OF GOD DWELL IN YOU
‘Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.’ Colossians 3:16 and Romans 15:4 inform us that for everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through endurance and the encouragement of the scriptures we might have hope. Make yourself get into the word of God. Even if it seems dry and lifeless to you, keep reading and you will be encouraged and uplifted.
When we allow God’s Word to dwell in our lives, it changes and transforms us unto the image of God himself. It also becomes treasured in our lives. ‘All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.’ – Timothy 3:16
Furthermore, the word of God allows us to shed negative things that disturbed us at one time, and in many cases, overcame us. Amazingly, the word of God makes you healthy in your physical appearance, with the glory of the Lord shining in your face. Meditating on God’s word creates calmness in your inner spirit and even eliminates or reduces the symptoms of many illnesses. ‘Do not let this Book of the Law depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful’ – Joshua 1:8 (New International Version)
IF YOU DON’T MAKE A MOVE TO PURSUE YOUR DREAM; YOU WILL BE REMOVED FROM ACHIEVING IT IN LIFE
MAKE THAT MOVE NOW!
Written by: Ferdinard Senyo Lawson
Ferdinard Senyo Lawson is a Creativity Award (CA-AWARD, 2015) Best Life Coach & Best Public Speaker Winner, True African Heritage Awards (BEST AUTHOR, 2015) and Beffta. Founder & C.E.O of Ferdinard Lawson Empowerment & Inspirational Agency C.I.C ( FLEiA.CIC) in UK, Public Health Professional, Author, Lifestyle Coach, Transformational & Public Speaker and Publication Consultant. He is an international speaker.
