GIVING BACK TO THE PARAGON COLLEGE GIRLS

Paragon College Girls

Teenage is such a challenging stage for girls, so we thought it’s a needful thing to lend our voices to the many that the girls at Paragon College will hear at this pertinent stage of their lives.  LadyIcons in Collaboraton with soulful and inspirational singer; Tarrah visited the girls to have a talk themed “WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE”.

Both Tarrah and Njay had talk sessions with the girls on Confidence and the need to know who they are.  They were adviced more than anything to base their understanding of their capabilities and self confidence on who God says they are.

Njay Speaks

Tarrah spoke more to the girls through her song “Beautiful” during which they were given questionnaires to fill as a way of feedback.

When the first part of the visit was over, the boys were also not left out as IK, a male friend who supported our visit spoke to them on the habit of Time Management as a very important one for now and even in the future.  He and KC another male friend who was there to also support gave more live to the the event with more songs that the students danced to.

IK Speaking to the Students

The elated students received gifts of either a Maths Set or a Mini Dictionary to go back with. ( Find more pictures in our Gallery)

It is our goal to do this at many other schools and even do a follow up for the Schools already visited, but we definitely need support in many ways.  Do reach out to us if you want to be part of this great assignment.

The Team

ITS HALF TIME;THERE’S STILL TIME TO SCORE!

WELCOME TO JULY!!!

It’s the second half of the year. I do not really intend to write much but to encourage you who probably haven’t had a great 1st half or you who has great plans for the 2nd quarter.

Credit:googleImages

 

Maybe you had plans but haven’t accomplished any or maybe you have ideas but never got to put them together into any concrete plan. While we all know that it is good to start early, but then to never start will be the issue. 

Personally, I have had things on my mind to do this year, some are ticked done, while some lie in my list as ideas still. The truth though is that there is no plan to let them to linger for too long or even die in the least. But, a lesson I am learning gradually is not to worry unnecessarily over plans unaccomplished, it doesn’t get anything done, rather than increase the problem.

The big idea then is to take stock of what has been done and what has not been. Make a list of priority tasks, plans or projects as the case may be and take them, one step at a time. 

Personally, this new quarter, I have decided to take a new step in the direction of my Life’s purpose. Truth is that questions lie before me. More so, the fear of stepping into a new place, but I choose to trust God who is able to direct me exactly where I should be as and when due.

Like I said already, the plan isn’t to write much, but to encourage you who’s wondering if its right to start at this time. It’s not Late as long as you are determined to start. And to you that has started already; Like the word that came to me sometime ago… No need for the Big Bang, start from where you are and God will definitely bless your little steps.

Credit:GoogleImages

The Big Brands didn’t start big, but they started one day!!! Let’s Go!!!

CULTIVATING BURNING DESIRE

I found this beautiful article and I believe a lot of us need to read this at this time.

So many of us are at the point when we are already giving up, even before starting,

some of us are halfway into what we want to do,

but we can’t just understand why we can’t seem to move forward anymore.

Maybe, we are lacking one of the 8 points listed.

It’s time to dust your goal and learn some things to keep going.

I just posted four out the eight, believe it’s better this way for easy digest.

Maybe we take one at a time and this time try to really work on each item.

No need to be in a rush and achieve nothing at the end of the day.

Just one at a time and we can slowly but surely get each right. Enjoy.

All great success women enjoy ultimately begins with an idea, but what makes ideas become reality is the fuel of human desire. An idea by itself can give you a temporary feeling of inspiration,

but burning desire is what gets you through all the perspiration necessary to overcome the inevitable obstacles along the way. When asked during an interview how he managed to reach the top as a professional bodybuilder and Hollywood actor, Arnold Schwarzenegger replied with a single word, “Drive!”

Take a moment to think about the goals you’ve set for yourself. How committed are you to achieving these goals? Under what conditions would you give up? What if you could significantly increase your desire to achieve these goals? What if you wanted them so badly that you knew with absolute certainty that you would absolutely, positively never ever give up? When you are truly 100% committed to reaching your goals, you move from hoping to knowing. If you want something badly enough, then quitting is simply not an option. You either find a way or make one. You pay the price, whatever it takes.

Those with an intense, burning desire to achieve their goals are often referred to as being “driven.” But is this special quality reserved only for a privileged few? Certainly not. With the right approach, anyone can cultivate a deep, burning desire within themselves and move to a state of total commitment, knowing with certainty that success is as inevitable as the sunrise.

So how do you cultivate burning desire? You begin with an outside-in approach, altering your environment in ways that will strengthen your resolve while eliminating doubt. If you take the time to do it right, you’ll establish a positive feedback cycle, such that your desire will continue to increase on a daily basis.

Here are eight steps you can take to cultivate burning desire to achieve any goal you set for yourself:

• BURN THE SHIPS

I’m not going to pull any punches with this one. If your goals are really important enough to you, then you can start by burning the proverbial ships, such that you have no choice but to press on. For instance, if you want to launch your own business, you can begin by making the commitment to quitting your job. Write a letter of resignation, put it in a stamped envelope addressed to your boss, and give it to a trusted friend with firm instructions to mail the letter if you haven’t quit your job by a certain date.

One Las Vegas casino manager made the decision to quit smoking. He didn’t feel he had the personal willpower to do it alone, so he took out a billboard on the Las Vegas Strip with his photo on it along with the words, “If you catch me smoking, I’ll pay you $100,000!” Was he able to quit smoking? You bet! (Ok, bad pun.) This is called willpower leveraging. You use a small bit of willpower to establish a consequence that will virtually compel you to keep your commitment. As Andrew Carnegie once said, “Put all your eggs in one basket, and then watch that basket!”

In the classic book The Art of War, Sun Tzu notes that soldiers fight the most ferociously when they believe they’re fighting to the death. A good general knows that when attacking an opposing force, it’s important to create the illusion of a potential escape route for the enemy, so they won’t fight as hard. What escape routes are you keeping open that are causing you not to fight as hard?

If you don’t burn those ships, you are sending the message to your subconscious mind that it’s ok to quit. And when the going gets tough, as it inevitably does for any worthwhile goal, you will quit. If you really want to achieve your goals, then you’ve got to burn those ships to the ground, and scatter the ashes. If you’re thinking that the average person won’t do this, you’re right — that’s why they’re average.

• FILL YOUR ENVIRONMENT WITH MIND BOOSTERS 

Let’s say one of your important goals is to lose weight. Get some poster board, and make your own posters that say, “I weigh X pounds,” where X is your goal weight, and put them up around your house. Change your screensaver to a text message that says the same thing (or to some equally motivational imagery). Get some magazines, cut out pictures of people who have bodies similar to what you’d like to have, and put them up around your house. Cut out pictures of healthy food that looks good to you, and post those around your kitchen. If you work in an office, then alter your office in the same manner. Don’t worry about what your coworkers will think, and just do it! They may poke a little fun at you at first, but they’ll also begin to see how committed you are.

• SORROUND YOURSELF WITH POSITIVE PEOPLE
• 

Make friends with people who will encourage you on the path to your goals, and find ways to spend more time with them. Share your goals only with people who will support you, not those who will respond with cynicism or indifference. If you want to lose weight, for instance, get yourself into a gym, and start befriending those who are already in great shape. You’ll find that their attitudes become infectious, and you’ll start believing that you can do it too. Meeting people who’ve lost one hundred pounds or more can be extremely motivating. If you want to start a new business, join the local chamber of commerce or a trade association. Do whatever it takes to make new friends who will help you keep your commitment.

Although this can be difficult for some people, you also need to fire the negative people from your life. I once read that you can see your future just by looking at the six people with whom you spend the most time. If you don’t like what you see, then change those people. There’s no honor in remaining loyal to people who expect you to fail. One of the reasons people fail to start their own businesses, for instance, is that they spend most of their time associating with other employees. The way out of this trap is to start spending a lot more time associating with business owners, such as by joining a trade association. Mindsets are contagious. So spend your time with people whose mindsets are worth catching.

• FEED YOUR MIND WITH EMPOWERING INFORMATION ON A DAILY BASIS

Inspirational books and audio programs are one of the best fuel sources for cultivating desire. If you want to quit smoking, read a dozen books written by ex-smokers on how to quit the habit. If you want to start a business, then start devouring business books. Go to seminars on occasion. I advise that you feed your mind with some form of motivational material (books, articles, audio programs) for at least fifteen minutes a day. This will continually recharge your batteries and keep your desire impenetrably strong.

When you absorb material created by an extremely passionate person, you’ll often find yourself feeling more passionate as well. A great book I read was Pour Your Heart Into It by Howard Schultz, the CEO of Starbucks. As I read the book, I was absolutely amazed at how someone could be so fanatically enthusiastic about coffee. Other enthusiasm-building authors/speakers I highly recommend are Harvey Mackay and Zig Ziglar.

MY DREAMS; YOUR REALITY

I wrote this at a stage of my life when I had to go beyond my limitations,.

When  I struggled with the boundaries around me.

It wouldn’t pass for a poem, No, I just poured out my heart

Filled with a lot of my reality and some real imaginations.

Will really come in handy if you are at a crossroads today

struggling with making the next move.

Look away from your past, your Future is Loaded.

Keep that Dream Alive, You are about to Break the Boundaries.

 

Do I dream dreams that seem bigger than me?

Does all I say about my future and plans sound like am building castles in the air?

 

Oh yes, maybe they are cos you know my background

You knew I went to the not-so-wonderful schools

You know, those ones that before we say their names we had already told you it’s not a big school;

 

Or maybe cos you knew where I grew up

In the slums where it was hard to dream big

Cos there seemed to be nothing to inspire our dreams

Where if you dared dream, wouldn’t pass that of a village champion

 

And even when you wanted to shoot right above that

The naive friends of yours, either out of fear or jealousy

Would laugh at you so hard or nicely “advice” you to face reality

And then all the castles in your mind, like some of our national buildings

Comes crashing down like the bang

 

Yeah maybe all these follow well that I shouldn’t dream

Or maybe I should, but not outrageously

Or can’t you see? You seem to ask me

Haba now, all the people who achieved that had a wealthy background

 

And just like my village friends back in the days

You advise me to limit my dreams and aspirations

Cos all the people I look up had rich foundations

 

But come to think of it, there’s sense in what you are saying

Maybe my dreams are somewhat “unrealistic”

Why don’t I tone them down, at least to something “Achievable”

Thoughts in my mind, inspired by your dream killing friendly gesture

 

I begin to consider and for some time,

My life, my dreams are at a standstill

Cos I am beginning “to see reasons with you finally”

 

There I am, just staring, gazing into an empty space

The supposed “Nowhere” I had long been venturing into for so long

I am collecting all my tools, my scraps, my pieces

And withdrawing them from the place that for so long had been my canvas

 

 

Get Up!!!

But hold on! Whoever said I cannot make it?

Just cos it seems my background isn’t all that

You want me to take it all back, to pull them all out and down

My big picture with the little pieces that was almost complete

Just cos you said so?!

 

Why? Remind me of your reason again

Ooh! My Background, yeah…

 

Not to worry friend, that’s what makes it all the better

After all, what’s the wonder in starting from the top to get to the top?

You see my friend, the awesomeness of it all, is to make it up there from nowhere

 

So don’t worry about me, just follow my story and maybe you might want  to also start dreaming

Cos I see it all coming together,

 

I feel a force pushing me, and a voice unlike yours calling me to come on

I am beginning to see it crystal clear, and all I need is right here

Inside me, inspired by the great one living in me

I’m so close to touching the blue sky in everything I do

 

So shall I keep dreaming? cos these things you call unrealistic

Will soon be beneficial to your Reality….

 

WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE?! (THE ISSUE WITH SELF WORTH)!

Credit:Google Images

Credit:Google Images

Imagine you were walking on the road and someone randomly throws a question at you…Who do you think you are? How would you answer, or more appropriately; How would you react to that question?

Say we make an effort to analyse how different people would answer this question. Let’s work with three groups.

GROUP 1:  This set of people, which I believe will make up the majority of the number, would react to this in shock and disdain.  This question ignites a certain sense of anger, stemming from an inner feeling which could pass for “self-consciousness” or “inferiority complex”.  This person is torn between a desire to give an answer that will get them noticed in Pride and/or a fear of  being humiliated in case they didn’t give the expected answer. “What kind of a question is that?; Who are you to ask me that?” are possible answers, arising from a desire to prove one’s worth.

GROUP 2:  This 2^nd group is made up of people who totally have no clue who they are, or are basically confused about it. At this question, they just feel the person who asked, just washed their dirty linen in public.  They most times will find themselves recoiling into their shell.  With a speechless demeanor, they would pray the ground opens up to swallow them.  How unsure they are and not in the least prepared for this kind of question.

For the third group, just very few I believe will belong to this group. These, do not only know who they are, but are always ready with the answer. This takes a constant exercise on the knowledge they have about themselves.

In considering how a couple of friends reacted when I asked them this question, even though I did in the most friendly manner; they all thought it was a very rude question to ask.

What we seem to ignore however, is that for each day we draw a breath, we are faced with a daring task of giving life the answer to this soul-searching question; “WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE?!”.  Many of the struggles, and situations we find ourselves in, unassumingly, would pass for us, trying to provide Life with the right answer, efforts to prove who we really are and what we are made of.

Most of these times, we are not specially prepared, but it appears life does not care less. To her, how can we not know who we are; What kind of life do we want live when we don’t even know why we should live it? !  In cases when we don’t provide a reasonable answer, we would definitely be dealt a blow.

While we go on, you might want to have a thought about which of the groups you belong to>

The issue of Confidence and self-esteem seems over beaten and sounds like a question for girls alone, but a thorough search deep within us would reveal the truth. The lives most of us live are Pretty Covers of the little Fears and the Pressures underneath. Sometimes, our dress sense, our circle of friends, our ways of expressions, our gesticulations are all Us trying so hard to be viewed in a certain “acceptable way”.

Ah ah!!! Grown Ladies do not do all these now, haba!!!? (The thoughts in your head)…Well, let’s get to find out………

-Married women trying to compete with themselves on whose husband is richer;

– Office Colleagues in a silent competition of who dresses better;

-Ladies going into debt to go with the fashion trend; latest clothes and hairs in town;

-Some others caring less about the way they look as a way of rebelling against the trend (isn’t this an issue too);

-Several others living like after them, its still them (confidence over baord)……….. Please continue the list………..

All these we would agree, pass for unbalanced self worth. Although an attack on them all would pass for asking for the source of a tree by the leaves.There are basic strong reasons these happen; family backgrounds, Peer pressure, past experiences, Losses,lack of love, and the many like these.

We most times do not make the choice of the circumstances that rob us of our Self Worth, but I am a firm believer in the popular saying; that we don’t decide what happens in our past but our future is our decision to make. I propose a way of handling marred self worth as first; doing a deep search within us to find the root cause and then making a Decision to get rid of them.

Its all in the mind and as soon as we can handle our mindsets about who we are…the solution is easier than supposed. Maybe you are one of those going going through this or you know a teenager or even a grown woman who has problems with self worth, I propose you take time out to do a search deep down to find out the reason this is happening to you and in the next post; we’ll find on how to deal with these.

While you do, Consider this saying; “AS A MAN THINKETH IN HIS HEART, SO IS HE (Proverbs 23:7)….IT’S ALL IN THE MIND..

TODAY’S LIFE NUGGETS

• Always be a first-rate version of yourself, instead of a second-rate version of somebody else.

Judy Garland

 

 

 

 

Credit:Google Images

• 1 Timothy 4:12 “Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith and in purity.”

             (The Holy Bible,NIV)

TEEN PRESSURE ;HOW INFORMED ARE YOU?

Credit:Google Images

I have been privileged to work with teenage girls, and gratefully so. It has exposed me to a lot that goes on with our young people.  Most disturbing among my many discoveries are that most girls are truly unhappy, do not feel beautiful, are confused about who they are. Most of these stem from the situations at home. It bothers me so because I know that the rest of the choices they make stem from these suppositions. The many other girls who claim to have got it all together do not make it any easy for them.

I was once saying to a mother, that I think before we beat our girls up for not doing well in their exams and not doing well in this or that, we should carefully look inside them and find out what has really gone wrong. It might just be them trying to find their feet through the pressures of fitting in.

We do agree that teen challenges are not just peculiar to those of this present times. But the issue still remains that even though many of us have been victims of teen pressure, we can’t seem to understand their challenge.  Times we even try to, we appear too helpless to help them.

I do think the basic reason is that most of the mothers do not pay attention to our girls. We tend to hush them or innocently avoid talking  about stuff with them (lest we expose them to what they do not yet know). But we do know that our girls are growing faster than we did,

(I Know I might not be that old, but I speak for every woman)

Then, they go on in search of love and a listening ear, to find solace in the hands of the supposed friends whose advice not only misleads them, but also imprisons them in the shell of trying to impress the lot.

Stella Damasus did quite a great justice to this topic, so I think I’d refer you to click here for her post to learn more.  Do well to leave your comments here on how to help our teenage girls. Some one might just need to read and learn.

Keep Winning!!!