Monday 13 June 2022

3 Things We Can Do About Nigeria (4): the Crux of the Matter 2

 

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Continued from the previous post. You can read the previous articles through these links: 1, 2, 3.

 

3. Attack the Root Causes

If the leaders that we have are not ready to help us, then we must help ourselves. If the people that have been voting in unpatriotic leaders have been voting wrongly then we must start educating them. It may be true that majority of our legislators (senators and representatives) are not absolutely selfless people. It may be true that majority of Nigerian politicians are potential political investors seeking to get elected and recoup their investments through profits that are dangerous to Nigeria’s future. But, even if it is absolutely true that many of our elected leaders don’t do the best they should actually do while in office, that reality will not change if we don’t do something about it. Our legislators have the power to do a lot more than they presently do. If they truly bear the interest of the people at heart, they are able to use policies to influence positive change, make political offices attractive to only those that want to serve Nigeria, reduce the cost of governance, mitigate corruption across all levels and fix the impossible insecurity problem over time and even checkmate the almighty president whenever he slacks. But they will only do those things and perhaps more if they are properly installed by the people themselves. Most of the leaders that are elected to hold forth in Abuja are not affected by the concerns of most Nigerians. They were not absolutely given a seat there by people who may not have means but have many excellent leadership options. So, the laws that most of them make are made by choice and interest and not by commitment and accountability. On the face of it, their money got them there not their readiness to serve.


So, what’s your role in all these? Your role is to start from where you are with what you have. Get your PVC. Get concerned about the selection process of the person that will sit over the funds allocated to your local government. If you already know that the monies some of our leaders misappropriate, even when borrowed by the entire nation, belongs to every Nigerian, and that it should get to everyone in form of good roads, better healthcare, quality education, affordable food and shelter, reliable electricity, effective security, etc. and that the misappropriation of such monies is the reason why some (but quite many) people die through road accidents and insecurity or healthcare issues, students get poor education, people become corrupt to prosper or even survive in our society, business becomes quite expensive to run, etc., then start doing something effective about it henceforth. If you didn’t think of it that way before, well now you should. So, start enlightening those that are yet to see these root causes as our problems and encourage them to take responsibility within their vicinity. That is one way to help ourselves.


Most of all, examine yourself often and sincerely. Ask yourself, with the kind of decisions I make each day, the kind of life I am living right now, if I were to be the Ward Counsellor, the Local Government Chairman, a Member of the State or Federal House of Representatives, a Senator, the Governor of my state or even the President of my country, would Nigeria get better or worse? Would my reasons for getting angry about poor governance in the first place be justifiable? When you ask these questions, you will sense the truth. So, if sense that you’re not good enough, try to become a better Nigerian because there will always be room for more improvement. Most times, people get the kind of leaders they deserve. But we are clamoring that we deserve better than we are getting right now and we truly do. So, let’s make sure that we ourselves are more than the mere culprits that many of our leaders think we are. Let’s start making a difference. Let's fix this nation.

 

Sunday 5 June 2022

3 Things We Can Do About Nigeria (3): the Crux of the Matter 1

 

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Continued from part 2, which can be read by clicking here.


Regardless of what your opinion about the best way forward for Nigeria is, the starting point for everyone is getting involved. I am totally for one Nigeria through proper restructuring and regional governance though I absolutely recognize and respect other people’s rights and opinions. But since there is a common starting point, I will briefly discuss 3 things we can all do to move from poor governance to good governance in Nigeria.


1. Get Involved

Join the political process. You don’t have to join a political party or ask to be voted for. But you can support those that you’re sure have the capacity to change the narrative. So, get your PVC. Get educated about your rights as a citizen. Educate others too. Think up useful solutions to the problems in your environment and provide ideas to those that can implement them. Rebroadcast good initiatives.


Also, remember that bad leaders don’t drop from the skies. They were raised by some parents and guardians too. So, do your best to raise a good family. Before doing something, ask yourself if doing it will make Nigeria better or worse if everyone does likewise. Yes, the country could be hard at times. But if we can’t be good examples at the base, we won’t be better examples than those at the top and the problems in our society will keep mounting. So, strive to become one of the points where the chain of problems in the entire system always have to get broken. Get involved responsibly.


2. Demand for Accountability

If there are no followers, there will be no leaders. But when leadership is not accountable and the system is vulnerable to unpunishable misconduct, its quality is more likely to be poor. So, demand for accountability at the local, state and federal government levels. Don’t judge people blindly. Don’t spread fake news. Ask for facts and figures. Seek to know how much was budgeted, how much was given or obtained and exactly how the funds were spent.


You don’t have to know the president of Nigeria but your ward counsellor and local government chairmen are not so far from your reach. Get to know them. Some these people will sit up if they know that a lot of serious people are checking up on them for public reasons.


But then, as you demand for accountability, be accountable too. Be disciplined. You may be facing a lot of challenges but you’re not alone. A lot of people are feeling the heat even when they don’t make it obvious. So, don’t be the one that will pull out the cord of hope in other people’s hearts through your actions. Don’t be a source of misdeeds that the rest of us have to manage. Be responsible. Be a beacon of light in your environment. And really, I’m not asking you to love other people more than you love yourself. I am only pleading that you let people see that there’s hope for Nigeria when they observe how genuinely you try to make Nigeria better.

 

Continued in the next post. Read the next but last post in this series here.


Sunday 15 May 2022

3 Things We Can Do About Nigeria (2): the Reality

 

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Continued from part 1. Click here to read Part 1 if you haven't.

Whether we see their political tactics as unwarranted shenanigans or permissible cleverness, those approaches are what they believe will work in Nigeria. It has worked for them before. Perhaps, it is still working for some of them. And in places where poverty and illiteracy continue to prevail, it may keep working. So, it’s not a question of whether it is right or wrong. The real question is, is that the kind of politics we want to have? Without considering any data source, I would take the risk to predict that you (the reader of this article) are not among those that are influenced by that kind of political strategy. Though it’s a wild guess, I know that most of the Nigerians whose politically will can be influenced by petty cash are not likely to have access to smartphones, the internet or blogs like this. Some of them might be uneducated. Some might just be seeking how to survive each day of overwhelming disadvantages or how to have their next meal. But, all of them have something in common; they do not have the viable options, the dignifying survival instinct, the inexplicable grace that you often have.

 

The truth is, a man is only as disciplined as situations allow him to be. You cannot withstand external pressure when you do not have the innate or mental capacity to do so. Only men who can afford to lose their lives, their peace, their beloved, their opportunities and even their plans can withstand any kind of external pressure. Such men, who can lose their lives and their everything for others, are very scarce. They are in extremely short supply. Why? Their lifespans are often short and even when they exist and live for long, they are often almost irreplaceable. But that is the irony of life. Those who must do good must fight evil. The more the good you want to do the more the evil you will have to fight. So, you see, everyone actually has a breaking limit. Everyone has a yielding point. Everyone has something that can be used against them. Given the most perfect circumstance for their own kind of customised failure or submission to wrongdoing, even the strongest of supermen and women will yield to pressure.

 

So, that is why it is important for good people to always come together. To support one another. To form formidable groups, and if possible, an overall formidable group. To overlook the differences that do not affect our humanity but rather strengthen what we all have in common, the good of all people. Whether you’re Yoruba, Igbo or Niger Deltan, Hausa or Fulani, or of any other tribe, the onus is on all of us to look beyond religion, tribe, origin and all other secondary attributes and focus on a culture of common good. A culture of unity. A culture of what is good for us. It is our collective responsibility to help the weak among us, the illiterate among us, the disillusioned among us, the vulnerable among us. If we do not do this, we will keep running around in circles. The strength of water is in unity. The strength of electricity is in bulkiness. The strength of fire is in its size. No matter how strong one individual is, they cannot be as strong as they will be if they are joined by other people.

 

Let’s unite together to solve our problems. They are not other people’s problems; they are our problems. Though a lot of us didn’t contribute to the creation of most of the problems we face today, they are now our own. They are ours to solve. We shouldn’t multiply them. We should mitigate them. So, let’s become the problem-solving generation. Let’s initiate the beginning of a new history. Let’s live and let others live.

 

To be continued.....

Friday 15 April 2022

3 Things We Can Do About Nigeria (1): the Intro

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I’m not a politician. I’ve never been one. I’m just a hobbyist writer and concerned Nigerian. But the first time I ever attended the meeting of a political party at the house of a prominent Senator somewhere in Lagos, I was amazed. I hadn’t planned it. It was my first, long holiday in Lagos and one of my most enterprising and adventurous cousins and his friends had come to pick me up at the bus-stop. Since I didn’t know Lagos that much, I couldn’t tell that we were not going home directly. But anyways, I had no option than to attend the meeting with them after I was given a low-down and assured of my safety. Apparently, I didn’t know what to expect so I had my second analogue camera on me. Though I hadn’t loaded the camera with film yet, I had to go and drop it in the car before I could be allowed in. Yes, we were thoroughly searched and I think that was a good thing. I do not remember the exact year this event occurred but it must have happened sometime between 2005 and 2008.

 

You might be wondering what my cousin and his friends were looking for at that kind of meeting. Well, I did ask them and got an honest answer. Basically, they often went there after the usual Lagos grind to cool off, have fun and know what’s happening in that Senatorial district. For them, it wasn’t about the money or refreshments. It was just another adventure. And I believed them. I believed them because when I saw how much was given to one of them who doubled as a representative, I knew they couldn’t possibly be going because of the money. At least, I had a rough idea of how much this my older cousin handled in his business on a daily basis.

 

Being a novice, I was taken aback by the reality of how monies were actually shared to win people’s approval. I also heard how various avenues were being exploited to obtain money to fund activities. Some of the avenues were said to been existing without the knowledge of the President (yes, the one in Aso Rock at that time). There was a register of names of representatives. Each representative in attendance received some preassigned amount of money, signed for it and was meant to go and share it with other persons. So, yes, the Ghana-must-go-bags stories are real! I had started reading about leadership and the problems in Africa at that time. So, they actually showed me some of the bullet points I needed to add to my list of problems in Nigeria back then.

 

Let’s make no mistake about it, it costs money to do politics. Globally, it costs lots of money to do massive publicity and win elections. Politics may involve lots of volunteering and networking but those who will win elections must spend money; whether they have it or not. So, what was happening that day was strange to a schoolboy like me. But to those who organised the meeting, it was all about political strategies. None of the things they did or said at that meeting needed to be reviewed.

 

These days, I try to write shorter posts. Please click here to read part 2.

Saturday 26 March 2022

How to Become a Better Reader: Breaking the Comprehension Barrier (2)

 

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This post is the second part of an ongoing discussion. If you are yet to read the first part and would like to do so in less than 5 minutes, please click here.

 

Link the Content or Information Presented to Prior Knowledge

Most times, materials appear difficult or are actually difficult to understand because we are unable to see things the way their authors did when they wrote them. We may not have the kind of prerequisite knowledge or experience that the authors have so, we will need to consciously find the relationship between what we already know and what they are trying to share with us. To interrelate the content of a difficult material to what you already know, consider the topics, main ideas, principles, examples, etc. in what you are reading and connect them to the ones you already know. Doing this might help you understand the material better or inspire you on how to bridge the gaps between what you know and what is being discussed. Also, if the author included the details of references or a list of additional study materials in the material, you may consider accessing those other materials to see if reading or skimming through them would aid your understanding of the actual material. However, that is only advisable if you have the time for it. Otherwise, you should focus on other (time-sparing) techniques.

 

Attempt to Summarise the Content of the Material

Sometimes, materials are difficult to understand because they are not written in familiar words or comfortable structures, volumes, etc. Consequently, creating a summary of the material while reading it and focusing on understanding that summary might help improve your understanding of the material. When you are given a material and it seems too difficult to understand, attempt to summarise the material in your own words without removing key concepts or distorting the obvious opinions of the author. Then try to read and understand the summary. Creating a summary should not take so much time if you time yourself properly and maintain discipline. But, if for any other reason you find the summarisation process too time consuming, you might want to focus on summarising just the difficult or most difficult parts.

 

Read More of the Kinds of Texts You Consider Difficult Regularly

If you are likely to keep encountering such material often in your current or future endeavour, it is important to put in extra effort and start familiarising yourself with similar materials regularly. In this case, you will need to up your game and apply the ideas I have already suggested above in addition to those you will think of by yourself and those you will get from other experienced readers. The truth is, no matter how difficult a material is, it is still possible to understand it. Once you can identify why it is difficult for you, you can find effective solutions to the cause of that difficulty and gain a good understanding of the material. So, challenge yourself by reading more of such materials.

 

Seek the Recommendations of Persons That Are Familiar with That Particular Material or Such Kinds of Materials

Finally, if you know or can find persons that have studied or used the material before, you should find out how they were able to understand it. Ask them relevant and clear questions and try out their suggestions. If the material was recommended by a superior, teacher or tutor, you could also seek their opinion on how to improve your comprehension of its content. Tell them the efforts you have already made on your own to improve your understanding and the outcome. They are most likely going to help you by supplying useful ideas that will aid your understanding or they might decide to recommend an alternative material that you can equally use to achieve the intended outcome. But when asking the person who recommended the material to you originally, let it be very clear that the help you need is how you can effectively understand the content of the material. Make sure you don’t suggest that you are trying to avoid “seemingly” difficult materials or dodge the challenge they may have intentionally presented to you.

 

The suggestions above are just ideas that I have personally applied before. However, after drafting this post, I decided to randomly check out what some international schools have to say about the subject of discussion and found a few similarities in our ideas. If you would like to read their thoughts on how to understand difficult materials, you can click here and here. Alternatively, if all you want to know is how to study smarter, not necessarily how to understand difficult materials, you might learn a few things from this school. Kindly note that sharing these links (for more ideas) does not mean that I am presently affiliated with any of the sources.

 

Cheers to you, on your journey to becoming a better reader!

How to Become a Better Reader: Breaking the Comprehension Barrier (1)

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When a piece of writing or a study material is easy to comprehend, you will definitely spend less time understanding it (compared to when it is difficult) and really, that is how things should be. Or, maybe I should clarify that that is one thing I have realised as a reader too. I believe that the goal of every writer should be to be easily understood by their readers. As a writer, you are likely to make maximum impact when you are able to communicate your ideas or thoughts in a way that all or most of your readers can clearly understand them. So, except in cases where the target readers are expected to be familiar with the nature of the material, no matter how seemingly difficult it may be, or the objective of the writer or recommender of the text includes the creation of a learning experience in the minds of the readers through some form of mental exercise, no communication material should be written in a way that makes it hard for any fairly knowledgeable reader or potential reader to understand.


However, we all know that that is not the case and perhaps, that has never been the reality in written communication. Not all writers write to be understood by almost anybody and not all readers can easily understand the simplest kind of material. So, when an essential material appears difficult to understand, what can you do to still comprehend it? Well, there are certain techniques that you can apply to derive maximum understanding from any kind of material and I will share the ones I know shortly.

 

Examine How the Material Is Structured or Organized from the Beginning to the End

While this does not guarantee an absolute or even better understanding, you may find it helpful. If you are familiar with or have previously observed how materials in the same category as difficult material you are reading are usually structured, you will know if the one you have with you conforms or not. If you are new to such kinds of materials, try to find materials that are easy to understand but belong to the same category as the difficult material and compare their structures or organizations. Ascertaining whether the material you are reading conforms to the usual convention might help you realise how best to study and understand it. For instance, if the material is not well-structured, you may find out from the table of content that it is better to read randomly in a way that will improve your understanding than to follow the serial arrangement used by the writer. Also, you might notice in the preliminary pages that the author actually gave useful suggestions on what you can do to enhance your understanding of the material.

 

Identify the Actual Cause of the Difficulty You Are Experiencing

Most times, authors of written materials follow industry-specific writing standards and have conscious reasons for writing the way they do. Their reasons are not so hard to detect. If it is not the about the way everyone writes that kind of material, it would probably be about the way they have personally chosen to write the material. Once you have realised that a material seems quite difficult for you to understand, consciously analyse why the material seems difficult. Are there too many jargons? Using a dictionary or reference manual might solve that. Do you find the information presented abstract? Consulting additional material or finding examples might solve that. Are there no examples you can relate to? Discussing with a more experienced person might solve that. Are the sentences disjointed? Editing the material first might solve that. Is the author unable to convey their ideas or findings meaningfully due to poor lexicon? Contacting the recommender of the material or revising the material might solve that. Regardless of what the nature of the difficulty you are facing is, what you need to do is to first identify its root cause(s) and then seek the best ways to overcome them.

 

End of Part 1. Please click here to read the concluding part.

Thursday 17 March 2022

When Is It Okay to Give Up on Something? (2)

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Continued from the previous post. If you haven't read that, you can do so by clicking here.

3. When Giving Up Becomes the Only Way to Move Forward

There are times when the only way to make progress is to let go of what you’re pursuing. For instance, if you set a goal to pursue a marital relationship with someone and eventually find out that that person got happily married to someone else, the right thing to do is to give up. You should face your new reality, get over the heartbreak in due course and move on too. You definitely shouldn’t anticipate that something will go wrong with their union and stay hopeful about your goal to marry that person. Inasmuch as it is clear to you that the person you loved did not love you enough to choose you, the best thing you can ever do for yourself is to give up and move on. In fact, if you truly loved that person, you should settle your grievances with them, sincerely hope they experience the best in their new relationship and move on with your own happy life.

 

4. When What You Are Pursuing Is Taking More from You than It Will Give You

There is a cost for everything. Even the free things in life were already paid for by someone or something –be it a human being, nature, inter-system interactions or if you believe, an external supreme being. Naturally, we pursue goals that we know will either gratify us or contribute positively to the lives of other people. So, if you are pursuing a goal and you subsequently find it so demanding that the cost of achieving it (in terms of efforts required, finances involved, impact on your welfare, resources needed to stay driven, etc.) will eventually be more than the fulfilment you will derive from it, you may have to give up on it. Even if your goal will benefit the whole of mankind, as long as you are not able to make the kind of sacrifice that is required or you find out that the accomplishment will not be worth your losses eventually, the best thing to do may be to give up and maybe transfer the idea or goal to someone else.

 

Finally, there are more than 7 billion people here on earth today and I have always believed that quite a lot of us receive similar, exactly the same or parts of the same kinds of ideas at the same or different times in during our lifetimes. Consequently, after writing this post, I decided to find out what other people think about giving up sometimes and I have chosen to share the links to their opinions too. Some of their thoughts are in sync with mine but others are unique.

 

Disclaimer:

While sharing these links does not mean that I absolutely agree with the writers or endorse their suggestions, I believe they are shreds of evidence that I am not the only person who thinks there are times when it is okay to give up. In fact, I suspect that a lot more people believe so. These three are just a few of those who have decided to share their thoughts on the issue publicly on online platforms.

 

Please, see the links in the bulleted list below.

 

Till you read from me again, keep seeking solutions to the problems in Africa and remain strategic in your deliberations and contemplations!

 



Saturday 12 March 2022

When Is It Okay to Give Up on Something? (1)

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I am no pessimist. In fact, I believe in great possibilities. But, no matter how smart, driven, awesome, tireless, or persistent you are, there are times when you just have to give up. Yes, I just published a series on why and how you should persist till you eventually overcome on this blog recently. But I know that there are times when we get caught up in situations where giving up on our goal is the best thing to do. I will share 4 examples briefly.

 

1. When You Do Not Have the Privilege of Trying Again (Repeatedly)

You may have to give up on something if it has a deadline and you cannot extend or keep extending its deadline. Of course, you should have given it your best shot and absolutely confirmed that you cannot overcome the deadline challenge before choosing to give up. Once you are sure you have exhausted your chances, you should give up on it and find something else to focus your energy on. As an example, if you’ve been trying to become an executive in a prestigious club or professional association that has an age limit for eligible candidates and you set a personal deadline to attain that position but are unable to win the required election till you exceed the applicable age bracket, then you should be willing to give up on that goal and find another gratifying goal to pursue within or outside the organization.

 

2. When What You Are Pursuing Becomes Irrelevant or Less Valuable

It is okay to give up on something if while trying to achieve that thing, it becomes irrelevant or less valuable to you than it was when you originally set out to achieve it and if it is clear that stopping where you are or abandoning it is better than going through to completion. Once it is obvious that you will eventually waste time, money, efforts, etc., if you continue to pursue the goal but will save those vital inputs if you choose to stop where you are, then stopping or giving up is the right thing to do. For instance, if you set out to start a generator-manufacturing plant in Nigeria and the power supply from utility companies in Nigeria suddenly becomes so stable and reliable that the government unprecedentedly implements a climate-change policy that severely discourages the use of generators in the entire country, then you may have to abandon that particular business project and pursue another one.

 

Disclaimer:                               

While it is okay to give up on almost anything when doing so becomes necessary, it is never okay to intentionally give up on life. Life represents hope. It represents hidden opportunities. Each extra breath and each chance to exist represent endless possibilities that range from being an apparent nobody to becoming a fulfilled person. As such, this post or its sequel should not be mistaken for an approval to give up on life. That is absolutely not one of the things you should give up on.

 

Get ready to give up profitably but never give up on life!

 

To be continued in the next post…

Friday 18 February 2022

Overcoming Serial Failure

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Many of the things we enjoy today in every aspect of life were once undiscovered or non-existent. Just take a moment to think about it, for something as simple but important as feeding, some people had to keep trying out things until they discovered the kind of plants we can eat and the types that are poisonous and must be avoided. Also, in the history of technology, some people had to think creatively and build cooking implements (like pots and stoves), farming tools (like hoes and cutlasses) and even transportation means (like carts and coaches). Later on, man invented time telling machines (or clocks), electricity (which is something everyone cannot do without today) and telephony (which has pretty much made long-distance communication easy). Today, we even have the Internet and many new and helpful inventions keep coming up every day.

Of course, there are other areas too. Like health, housing, education and economics where novel inventions and modifications of previously existing inventions have made life easy for all. But the most important thing is, some people had to discover what was already existing or work on what was already existing to create solutions to the problems people face in life. Just as some people had to do all that for all of us, you have to do something similar for yourself and other people. You need to ask questions and find answers. Build on existing knowledge. Consult the right resources. And in time, you will find a way out.

If you keep failing at something, know that you can still succeed at it. You just need to know the right efforts to make to achieve the success you deserve. Serial failure is not evidence that something is unconquerable; it simply shows that you are yet to apply the right input or access the exact information or skill that is necessary to overcome that thing. So, if this is your case, keep trying and keep getting better. Keep finding new information and ideas. Keep asking questions and finding answers to fully understand your challenge. Take a break if you have to. But, keep attempting to obtain a breakthrough. If you don’t give up, one day, and maybe very soon, you will have a very inspiring story to tell, of how you conquered and eventually broke through.

And when you do break through, you will be able to show others coming behind how to overcome such a challenge in future. Besides, you would have earned the right and gathered the strength to take up greater challenges and attain greater heights in future, thereby creating a WIN-WIN situation for everyone. 

Cheers to a better you!

Monday 7 February 2022

Overcoming Challenges & Failures and Making the Best Decisions

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There are times when you will fail, times when your best efforts will not be good enough, and times when an unforeseen circumstance will hinder your success. Though, the experience can be very painful and quite destabilising, the best attitude is to learn from the experience and move on. Find out the actual reasons for the failure, seek practical means of absolutely eliminating or effectively mitigating those reasons and try to succeed again. Failure should be a learning experience on your way to a desired destination; it should not be a final destination itself.

Take the experience of infants for instance. An infant learns to crawl until they are due to start walking. When they are strong enough to start walking, they begin by trying to stand without anyone’s assistance. They often fail serially at standing without assistance until they eventually overcome that failure. After overcoming the failure of falling, they start trying to walk. They also fail at it until they eventually learn how to do it and do it repeatedly.

Similarly, when you fail at something that can be achieved, you are just learning how to succeed at it. It may take you more time or efforts than it took others. But when you develop yourself to the point where you should succeed or access the right information or network that would help you succeed, you will finally succeed. Just like infants, we will fail at anything until we are adequately prepared to excel in it. In fact, all things being equal, we will fail at anything and everything that requires efforts we do not presently satisfy because every important goal has its own requirements. 

If you do fail at something, spend less time feeling bad. Spend the most of your time asking useful questions. Gather feedback. Note what to do and what not to do next time. The right attitude to failure or mistakes is to learn from the experience and put in the right or better efforts next time. Brooding over your failure or mistakes will not change the present outcome. So, focus on improving your ability to think creatively. Seek and obtain guidance from those that have successfully overcome the kind of challenge you’re facing or the kind of failure you’re trying to overpower. Explore other useful sources of information online and everywhere else. And take the right steps at the right time.

Oftentimes, challenges or problems exist, mistakes or failures occur and the inability to make the best decision or even know the best decision to make prevail when there is an information gap. When you know what to do to overcome a challenge, get a desired result or make the best decision in a circumstance, the only outcome is success. If it is an obstacle that other people have overcome before, then that is enough evidence that you can also overcome it. Also, if it is something you are not certain that anyone has overcome before, know that you still have the potential to overcome it. Just find out and put in what it takes to overcome it. Though many factors come to play in cases where there is no evidence of prior triumph, the most important factors still remain your ability to think creatively and persist till you obtain a breakthrough.

Cheers to your forthcoming breakthrough!