Wisdom for 2018.

*One of the easiest ways to get the most out of a fresh year like 2018 is drawing a line between what you WANT and what you NEED. *

"Sir, I want to contest for the post of the president of my department" was the message I received this morning from one of my protégés who is in his 400 level at the University.

I smiled and queried him.....
"You WANT to or you NEED to"?

You see, life is much more meaningful and effective when you can separate what you want from what you truly need. Not everything you WANT is a true reflection of what you NEED per time. Sometimes, the things you need are the ones you don't want to do at that point in time.

I was not against his political ambitions actually, I just needed to ascertain if he's confident enough about the goal he WANTS/NEEDS to pursue at this point in life.

Back in 2010 when I started the university, I WANTED to make a "two one" and after my 300 level, I had just two years left and I NEEDED to make at least 4.5 every semester to achieve my second class upper goal. Luckily, I achieved that and got away with my goal at the end of the day. I learnt the difference between "WANTING" to achieve something and what must be done to achieve it at the end.

It's general for people to want certain things for their lives but it's personal when you understand WHY that goal should be a priority at that point in time. I wanted a "two one" turned to "I needed at least 4.5" every of the remaining semester to achieve my goal.

In between what you WANT is something you NEED to do in order to achieve what you want. When you've succeeded in determining the NEED behind the WANT, you're 50% ready to achieving your goals in life.

Write the goals you WANT for the year. Pass them through the "NEED test" and convince yourself why that goal is needful before you start investing your resources. Many times, we rush into chasing activities that are needless. We work ourselves out with things that are not well suited for the time being. It's truly one of the ways of communing with mediocrity.

Excuse yourself from wastage, wastage of time and resources by passing your goals through the NEED TEST. Is your goal truly needful?

Have a greater year ahead.

Timothy Icon