Made for success (2)

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“Everyone is a genius. However, if you assess a fish by its ability to jump from tree to tree like a monkey, it will spend the whole of its life believing that it is stupid.”

Success, like failure, is very predictable. The above quote is rightly or wrongly attributed to Albert Einstein. Nonetheless, the truism in it is infallible. Purpose is at the heart of effective function because purpose empowers function and is predictive of outcomes. Whatever a product was made to do becomes the parameter for assessing its success. Once purpose is not known, disaster looms. The missiles and the anti-missiles used in warfare are both generically referred to as missiles. However, while one is deployed as an offensive weapon, the other is deployed as a defensive to intercept an offensive missile fired by the adversary. No army can afford to make a mistake in the deployment of either of the two.

The next thing to know about anyone or anything in creation before being able to derive full benefits from them is the power inherent in them. Everything in creation is energy in one form or the other. Energy is manifested in two ways, latent and kinetic. Kinetic energy is activated power that is made available for function at any given time. It is what reveals current capacity and its limitations. It is what makes it evident to us that when fired, a pump action rifle and an AK47 don’t have the same range or refiring capacity even though both are lethal guns. Power can simply be defined as the functional capacity to effect change. Power is the currently expressed capacity of a person or thing to affect specific outcomes. It is not necessarily, contrary to what many believe, about brute force or brawn. Sometimes, a simple wink of the eye can alter a man’s entire life course. Delilah in the Bible did not lift a finger to fight Samson. Just a few sweet words to emotionally blackmail him, and before you could say, “Sam”, his power was gone and the mighty man was, literally speaking, reduced to a loaf of bread for his enemies. Whatever can change you or alter your conduct or outcomes in any given direction can be said to have power over you. Power is therefore relative to the task it is designed to address. A studio microphone may look like a stick, but it does not have the power to be a drumstick! To use it as such is to make a mockery of its identity and purpose. Power is predictive of potential. Wherever we see the power of anything displayed, it is almost a prophecy of what it can do but has not yet done. This is latent energy, also known as potential. It is inherently present in anything and anyone and is usually limitless, depending on who is deploying it and what it is deployed for. If you have ever witnessed a shooting that ended with fatalities, the next time you see someone holding a gun, whether it is loaded or not, a reverent fear descends on you and you want to move away from that environment or person as quickly as possible, not because you are afraid of the person holding it but because you know what the gun has the capacity to do if he decides to use it. While power speaks about events, potential speaks about unexplored possibilities inherent in a person or thing.

It has been said that the average person uses only about 10% of his brain’s capacity. To be a genius, it only requires using perhaps an extra 1% and you are in the class of the distinct and distinguished. The unfortunate thing is that most people don’t even function at the 10% level. They feel comfortable playing safe and hardly want to encounter any challenge that places a demand on them to do any critical thinking that can discover or deploy new capacity. Unexplored potential is the greatest tragedy in creation. Yet, many of us buy products whose manuals we hardly read, and so, sadly, ever explore their capabilities.

Everything in creation, even those made by man, was made to succeed. Every manufacturer, he has the success of his product at the back of his mind. Even if the product is the fake version of another one, the maker is eager to see it become the choice for those seeking a product like the original, for a lower price. Failure is a man-made phenomenon that mostly occurs when someone or a group of people somewhere tampers or have tampered with the order of creation as the Creator intended. It is in the interest of a creator to see his product succeed because every product he makes connects with his integrity. His name, a.k.a brand, is at stake. This is why products are branded. When people buy a branded product, they are buying into an identity and a promise. The experience of the customer with the product is what will determine the integrity or otherwise of the manufacturer. If I buy an Apple product, it is not because there are no other computers or devices in the market. It would be because of the confidence that I have in the quality of their products and what they promise to deliver. So, in the real sense of it, I wasn’t investing in a computer or gadget. I invested in a brand or name. The last thing to be affixed on a product is the logo or imprint of the manufacturer. This is not accidental. By the time the name is affixed, the integrity of the manufacturer is put on the line. So, every product on the production line goes through quality control checks to ensure that they function according to design and purpose before they are released into the market. What you are buying is therefore not entirely new. It is a finished and tested product designed to conform to certain performance standards. This is why manufacturers give warranties and guarantees which form the basis of continued trust and investment in the product.

If there is a dissonance between the identity and the promise, it means the bridge of trust between the maker and the consumer of that value proposition or product is broken. Soon enough, customers start voting with their feet and their wallets. Repeat business is 80% of what sustains a business. People continue to spend money on what satisfies their longing or solves their problem in the way they desire. If for any reason a business bleeds return custom and spends money, time and energy exploring new markets or prospecting for new customers, it will shut down sooner than later.

You, dear reader, are God’s workmanship. You were never designed to fail. But have you connected yet with your Source, your identity, your purpose, your power, and your potential? These are the things that legitimize your successful transactions and the attendant rewards on earth. By extension, to maximize the benefits of your relationship with anyone or anything on earth, make sure you also recognize these factors in them. You will definitely succeed, and your Maker and creation will be glad!

Remember, the sky is not your limit, God is!

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