OPPORTUNITIES; identify and seize them. --- contributed by @catherinedouglas

"The doors of opportunity are opening around us all the time. You need to have the vision to see what is possible on the other side and the courage to walk through them. You never know what opportunities for greatness are waiting for you."
….. Erin Prais-Hintz

Life is full of opportunities, lots and lots of them. The timing when they arrive may never be right, but that is no excuse for not making the best out of it. Often times a lot of people complain and wail that life has never been fair to them but little did they know that when opportunity came knocking they were snoozing on time, saying oh it’s not the right time, this one is not for me, more opportunities will come my way, all the while life is staring at you, like “you think you can dictate for me, oh well, let’s see”.

What is opportunity?

The Oxford dictionary explains it as a chance for advancement, progress or profit. A favourable circumstance or occasion.

During my undergraduate years, opportunities arose for a better understanding of my course of study but I never really took them seriously, during my internship year it got really worst. I exhibited nonchalant attitude towards my work and I taunted those who showed any sign of seriousness, calling them “over sabi”(those who feel like they know too much), busybodies and I constantly reminded them that there is no first position for the internship. Little did I know that sometime in the future I was going to spend money to acquire the knowledge that was offered me for free earlier on in my life. I lost that opportunity and it cost me. I am smart, but I had lost and forgotten the value of discipline, hard work and dedication. I thought because I had brains and was smart everything would come easy but little did I know I was doing myself more harm than good.

Opportunities, we lose them every day. And this mostly occurs because we cannot identify them. I read somewhere that an opportunity is like a game of hide and seek, you cannot sit in your comfy sit and expect it to fall into your laps.

In other to identify these opportunities when they come our way one must be;
• Curious: curiosity they say killed the cat, but not this cat. I believe being curious heightens your desire to learn and when you are willing to learn you jump at any opportunity to gain knowledge that comes your way. In a curious start, you are like a starved lion and you would ravage your meal like it is the last you would ever have.

STAY CURIOUS, STAY TEACHABLE

• Be open-minded and social: open-mindedness provides you with the opportunity to meet a lot of people and with a lot of people comes a lot of information, newer ideas, knowledge and a different level of advancement with each new interaction. Open minded individuals are free from prejudice and more receptive to ideas; you can think freely and not be blinded by irrelevant views. By being social, you get to attend more events and get to grow your network and your circle. People are actually a great kind of investment when you invest your time in the right set of people.

• Be proactive: STAY READY. I cannot stress so much on this issue, you have to be ready because if you are not ready this opportunity could be presented to you on a platter of gold and you will feel handicapped. By staying ready and being proactive you can take opportunities by the horn whenever they are present. Being proactive gives you an edge because you would be able to identify these opportunities before others. By being proactive, you are not sitting around and hoping someone would drop a golden opportunity in your lap, rather you are actively looking for it.

• Paying keen attention: my mother would always scream at you, Catherine you are a girl, bring your eyes down. Lol, mama was right, but not for me alone, or specifically as a girl child but that keen attention is relevant for every aspect of the human life. By keeping keen eyes on things, knowing that opportunities can be hiding anywhere gives you an added advantage. You never know when you might come across a clue that will lead you to the opportunity you have always been waiting for.

• Enhance your creative ability: creativity is the whole new level of advancement right now; it is amazing what the human mind can come up with if it is put to use. Active imagination and thinking can help you find opportunities where other cannot. Creating opportunities for one’s self is amazing and is readily achievable if we only put in the effort.

• Positive attitude: our attitude towards life is highly underrated, because a vast majority of us go through life with sagging shoulders like we have the problems of the whole universe on our shoulders. A cheerful attitude takes you through life with the knowledge that there is a new experience and possibly opportunity in almost every chance encounter.

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Finding opportunities is not the easiest task, but it is ALWAYS possible. Eventual,ly the time and effort we put in would definitely yiela d positive result. Opportunities are everywhere, we just have to know where to look and we have to be persistent in our search.

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Blog contributor: @catherinedouglas
Blog editor: @klynic, for the community!

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^{Thank You For Reading}