Hello there, happy holidays!

Are you looking for a new job or a business opportunity? Well today, I want to share with you stories about two ladies I know who are in similar situations.

Let’s call one Dokua. Dokua finished Senior High School last year, her grades were not so great and therefore she has re-written a couple of the papers and is now waiting for her results. While she waits, she is sitting at home with no money; she fancies a nice job as someone’s Personal Assistant or perhaps a Waitress. Not only that, she also fancies nice clothes and accessories, and of course a fabulous Android phone! Every day of the week, this 20-year-old lady asks her mum (who is on retirement) for money to do something e.g. buy a sanitary towel, to get her hair fixed, give church offertory, etc. Her mother has been lamenting and imploring me to help her find a job. The job market is tough but no problem we will see what we can do, I said to the mum.

I encouraged Dokua to join me sell some books to make extra cash but that didn’t work out because she was simply not ready to overcome her shyness no matter how I tried. Ok fine, I said to myself, I will give her time. I heard of some few opportunities and sent them her way but she never gave me any updates. Whether she applied or not, I had no idea till I followed up.

The second lady, we shall call Tina, has a new job but the money is not enough to sustain her. I told her about an opportunity to make money from selling diapers and she said she was interested. I told her I would send her the contact details. Some time later, I called to check on her ‘how is the diaper business going?’ ‘Oh you never sent me the contact details’, she replied. I was surprised because I thought I did. I sent it again. About two months later, I asked ‘did you contact the diaper wholesaler?’ ‘No please, I never received the number from you’ was Tina’s response. Now I was properly shocked, ‘but why didn’t you remind me?’ to which she said ‘I didn’t want to pester you’ Ahhhhh!

My question to these two ladies and to all who are looking for change but are sitting down waiting for that change to come to them is ‘how can you not pester?’ 

Many people ask me to help them on a daily basis, and guess who I remember most, yep! The ones who pester! Thou shall not push once, twice, thrice and give up; thou shall push, push, push ….until the desired results are achieved. The least I expect from Dokua is ‘please how do I draft a CV? How do I get a job? Some more questions, some action, anything to show that she is really interested in earning a living! Instead, I only see action when I follow up! Frankly, this is exhausting!

For Tina, I expect a constant banging on my door until she meets her need. I love the New Living Translation version of Matthew 7:7 ‘Keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you’.  The last time we spoke, I said to her ‘I won’t send you the number, I want you to show me that you really want this business’

My advice to you is simple: Don’t sit down and wish for something amazing to happen to you, go out there and find out what other people who in your estimation are successful do so that you can use their experiences to continue your own journey. There is even a saying that ‘heaven helps those who help themselves’, trust me when you start taking the baby steps the sort of ‘miracles’ that will fall your way will beat your imagination. However, these ‘miracles’ we await need us to start pushing. As the Roman Philosopher Seneca puts it ‘luck is what happens when preparation meets opportunity.’

2017 is staring us in the face right now. I bet you have drafted a strategy, new year’s resolution or at least you probably have an idea of something you want to achieve. Or perhaps, you are wishing for something mind-blowing to happen to you. Well, join me as we PUSH, my friend. I wish you a fabulous pushing spree!