From Economic Bloc to Global Geostrategic Power
In the shadow of an exhausted liberal order and amid the smoke of a new trade war, a quiet revolution is unfolding—not in the halls of Washington or Brussels, but in the south-south corridors stretching from São Paulo to Shanghai, Pretoria to St. Petersburg. It’s called BRICS, and it’s no longer just an acronym. It’s a signal.
The Question You’ve Been Asking Wrong
A scientist, an artist, and a man dying of thirst look at the same
glass of water. The scientist sees molecular structure, surface tension, the
physics of volume. The artist sees light bending through liquid, an interplay
of transparency and form. The thirsty man sees salvation—or a cruel reminder of
what he lacks.
Same glass. Same water. Three different truths.
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Imagine a man lost in the desert, dehydrated, desperate. On the horizon, he spots a shimmering oasis. The palm trees wave gently in the hot wind, and the promise of cool water beckons him forward. He stumbles toward it, hope propelling his exhausted body. When he finally reaches the spot, he discovers—there is no oasis. It was a mirage all along. Yet, that mirage saved his life by giving him the will to move.
A lot has been said about attitude in this generation, so I won’t bore you with redundant information. Attitude often takes center stage in the grand theatre of life. It’s the driving force that propels us toward our goals and shapes our perspective on challenges. It is also a determining factor of both success and failure. In the world of attitudes, two key players stand out: the “how to do” attitude and the “can do” attitude. While they may seem similar at first glance, they offer distinct approaches to achieving success, whether in the workplace, in personal endeavors, or when facing life’s uncertainties. Let’s explore the differences between these two attitudes and the impact they can have on our lives.
You most
likely replied, “yea, sure. What’s up?”
The truth is; you don’t. You don’t have a minute to spare.
Are you still running with your New Year Resolutions and Goals or have you abandoned it the same way you did last year, with a mental note to go at it again next year? Do you even still remember what the resolutions are?
Here is John Maxwell’s explanation in an excerpt
from his book, 15 Invaluable Laws of Growth:
“When I was a kid, one of my father’s favourite riddles to us went like
this: Five frogs are sitting on a log. Four decide to jump off. How many are
left?
As you go through life and come across its attendant highs and lows, you can either associate your experiences; the successes and/or failures, to factors you have control over or to forces outside your control. Whichever disposition you choose has a direct influence on your long-term success or failure.
Everything we do is driven by something. Some of our actions are driven by love. Some are driven by hate. Money is also a powerful driver. Some people also act based on their religious sentiments.
I was recently reminded of another powerful driver, Fear. Having the opportunity to meet with a lot of people from different walks of life on a daily basis, I peer into the psychological depths of many of them and see all kinds of emotions on their faces. One thing that is constantly reoccurring and almost impossible to ignore is Fear. These faces are adult faces, so the fear I see is not fear of the dark or of monsters. It is a fear that paralyzes us to act.
Life is messy. Every day we meet series of activities that compete ruthlessly for our time. We spend a huge chunk of our day struggling, often unsuccessfully, to squeeze in all our responsibilities at home and at work into the time available to us. Not to forget the time we spend on our most common obsession, the social media.
A new-born starts life being carried around; soon he becomes unsatisfied with being carried around, and begins trying to sit on his own. When he has mastered sitting, still unsatisfied with his level of achievement, he starts learning to crawl, then stand, walk, run and in some cases fly. Not being satisfied with a status quo has been the starting point of all advancements. Every worthwhile achievement and invention has always started with “not being satisfied”; it is a force that pushes us to be better and do better. It impresses in us a strong desire to make better use of the resources available to us to create a better environment for ourselves. If you are not “not satisfied”, you will not have any desire to invest any time or effort in improving any aspect of your life or achieving any objective, actually, you will not have any objective. You will simply not care; you would be satisfied.
He doesn’t know it yet but on January 4th, at 79 years of age, Ifeanyi will be laid to eternal rest at his wife’s side. On March 4th at 29 years, he and his wife will have their first child on February 4th, when he is 26, they will be married. Today, December 4th at 24, he will meet his wife.
