It is no more news that customers are evolving. The individual habits and expectations of modern consumers have changed the landscape into which marketing and advertising campaigns are launched. Simple ad campaigns and increase in bottomline are no longer simple equations – advertising agencies are working overtime and business owners are getting worried. This is because individuals now prefer to do their own research rather than just believe advertisers’ word for it. They are increasingly forming communities online and people have been discussing – including brands. Dissatisfied customers no longer waste time calling auto-responders for complaints – they simply turn to their peers online and are empowering others with information that is likely to have an impact on the reputation of your brand.
Businesses now need to get out of their comfort zone and begin to engage their customers through a comprehensive social media strategy. Starbucks coffee, an international brand is leading the way in engaging its customers on social media platforms. On the Nigerian scene, KPMG conducted a banking industry customer satisfaction survey and rated GTBank as the most customer focused bank (retail and corporate). It can safely be deduced that GTBank is certainly doing something right on the web. Beyond just opening media channels, what is it about GTBank’s social media strategy has made it so successful? Let’s analyze GTBank social behavior across the web:
Beyond having a beautifully designed website, Facebook or twitter pages, GTBank has been able to harness the power of online communities in delivering value to customers and potential customers. Here are some lessons for employing social media strategy for yours.
Don’t shout, Listen
The first way to begin to engage customers is to listen first. What are your customers saying and where are they? Whether your organization believes it or not, conversations are going on online about your brand, customers are sharing their experience and they are mentioning things you won’t ever find out even if you search your beautifully designed suggestion box.
Instead of leaving customers to complain about long queues, GTBank brought banking to their customers on the web. Listening before engaging your target audience ensures you don’t throw money at your business challenges. Innovative Public Relation tools are now available that enable PR professionals track conversations going on about people and brands on blogs, forums, social media websites and to be able to analyze and counsel organizations for online consumer engagement.
Go, join the conversation
While some organizations find it is easy to worry less about social media reports and to wish them away, lots of brands including GTBank, Honda, Mercedes Benz and Starbucks have gone to join the conversation on social media. Creating your own community on social media platforms online ensures that you have a platform where potential consumers come to complain, make enquiries, ask questions and you ultimately have your own online customer service forum where open communication and feedbacks are available for customers to interact with one another and with the brand.
GTBank is no longer busy shouting for attention and interrupting people with adverts; they are busy chatting with about 112,268 fans on Facebook, and over 1,259 followers on Twitter. Don’t just hurry to join the people community to control the conversation and restrict negative comments – you better not be found out. The goal is to help customers find solutions to their challenges, inspire consumer loyalty and to influence buying choices.
Content – push your stuff out!
Traditional campaign materials can be turned into online friendly versions and can be distributed freely. In two months of GTBank opening a YouTube Channel, 2,042 people have viewed its uploads. GTBank uploads videos, product launches, adverts on Facebook. The bank also has an interactive multimedia e-zine called Ndani which it distributes periodically. This is fully readable with flip pages, links and videos – all easily transferable among customers. What makes social media attractive is not only fruitful discussion, content is key. Why would someone visit your brand website if it doesn’t deliver value? GTBank’s website has a fully integrated internet banking service. Print adverts, videos and other freebies make it easy to get others do the advertising for the organization. One of the most successful viral marketing strategies is to get easily distributable materials out into the open.
Blendtec, a company which manufactures professional home blenders, produced an in-house video, which gained maximum exposure with 134.2million views on YouTube and a fivefold increase in sales.
Engage your customers
Having an online platform is not enough. Websites like Facebook is now awash with inactive fan pages without meaningful activity going on. The goal of social media engagement is not to have a page or website; it is to give customers the opportunity to gain ownership of the brand. Don’t forget, your goal is not to control, just discuss. Even with Starbuck’s 705,000 followers on twitter and over 5,428,000 fans on Facebook, it has gone ahead to open a website where consumers share their ideas on Starbucks (www.mystarbucksidea.com). GTBank uses it platforms to invite people to events and engages them by also moderating competition for fans – people love free stuff, ask GTBank. Fans have a place to open discussions and comment as many of them do. Go on ahead and participate, engage them and deliver value, and the customers will relate with your brand in a personal way.
It is becoming imperative that even customer service is no longer about sipping coffee while expecting customers to call your automated answering machine. Most of them never do anyway. However, many brands can learn a great deal from the way that GTBank is winning the heart of customers through the social web. The GTBank brand has created a digital dialogue with its customers, enabling online enthusiasts a platform to experience the brand and to give feedback on their services. GTBank is again showing its customers and potential customers that customer service remains their key selling proposition by putting communicating with their customers and prospective customers a top priority. Do you?

I delivered the message titled “My letter to Idris – 10 lessons to an undergraduate”. I spoke extensively on these lessons as they relate to life, leadership, academics and relationships. I enjoyed myself while sharing personal examples and principles that I learnt the hard way, the easy way and the ones I learnt after the fact. I intend to post the presentation once I finish sorting out the technical issues involving my website.

But going through the Ife – Lagos highway, I could literally point out potholes before we got there even after not being on that road close to a year. I thought about the numerous accidents I saw, the countless number of lives lost and families in grief because some people refused to execute their responsibilities. I thought about our challenges of power supply which have defied all possible approaches. When people rise into leadership in Nigeria, do they become helpless or conscienceless?

We need men in power, men and women with courage and a conscience; people who have come to understand leadership as a call to destiny and not one of the necessary rites of life. When the right people don’t show up by election day, people will vote for the ones available, and if we don’t show up to vote, some people will vote on your behalf. Will the next president please show up early enough?

We don’t have to vote for experienced incompetence.

Though life is calibrated and measured in years and accomplishments, the outcome of those times will depend on the little details of our lives – in days, hours, minutes and seconds. The key to success in life is getting to do little things correctly, all the time, every time, so that the summation of our actions will yield a balanced, structured end result which is a brand of impeccable and sound quality.

Even in my work, where I demonstrate a passion for work and idea generation, I have come to appreciate that commitment to quality and relentless attention to details are essential hallmarks of excellence. Attentions to details save organisations a lot of time, frustration and money. Most organizations and people that have enjoyed the greatest success understanding that it takes hundreds of small, seemingly insignificant details repeated day in and day out to create an unforgettably excellent experience.

Lesson #1: Train your brain, but back it up

Some clichés become so common they often lose their significance like it is often said that the shortest pen remembers better than the shortest memory. I have thus learnt to carry notebooks about wherever I go. I have notebooks for my work plan, personal projects and ideas, meditations and church notes- and I use them.

It’s not that the devil is in the details, but that every detail we forget contain a seed that can potentially make the difference between success and failure. If the benefits of your work, prayers and efforts will be reaped, attention to detail is an absolute necessity.

Lesson #2: Write your life

Even when you have a notebook, make sure you put things down- the stupid, necessary and the critical. Most time we can’t track our progress because we don’t care to measure it by writing it down ab initio. It doesn’t matter the information, put it down (and keep sensitive details secure!). The reason why the history of global development is western is that Africans propagate history by word of mouth which eventually gets lost in transmission.

Lesson #3: Order

Anyway you look at it; they’re going to be times within your job or life where your attention to details will save you. One of the key issues to being exact is orderliness. Having an organized desk, room or life may seem minor, but when the outcome of a circumstance clean and organized desk it’s easy to find papers quickly. And just like your desk, the rest of your job should be organized and neatly projected that so that little things like going over budget don’t get by you.

Lesson #4: Do things immediately

One of the reasons we lose details is usually the ‘I will do it later’ syndrome. The idea that there is a convenient time to do things always makes us rely on our memories to keep us up to speed.

Putting off tasks till later is half leaving things undone.

Lesson #5: Learn how to do things right the first time

No matter what business or personal activities you are involved in, you will be confronted with greater challenges that could have been prevented if you had paid closer attention to the details in the first instance.

Lesson #6: these things are a reflection of your leadership and personality

I was told of someone applying for the post of a financial analyst who was called to an interview. The man was astute in his presentation and was heavy on pedigree, but he forgot his CV and credentials at the venue of the interview when he left.

Excellence in any endeavor is a production in which every little detail tells a story about one’s personality, commitment, and character. Pay attention to the small stuff. Consistent attention to details produces excellence and that’s why every detail counts!

“The magic behind every outstanding performance is always found in the smallest of details.”

I would really just want to know how you felt, what went through your mind, how you currently feel about the value system in Nigeria and how you intend to further tackle the issue of wrong values. I look forward to reading ur reply.

Thank you.

Sincere regards

xyz xyz”

As I read his mail, many things came into my mind. I remember the unending bad publicity about the double standards and scandals that have continued to rock most of the respected leaders in the society. From of Tiger Woods, Juanita Bynum, T D Jakes and Paula White to Nigeria’s respected leaders both in the political and religious sectors of the polity, we are fast losing role models to scandals- from sex to money.

So many thoughts have ran through my head as news and rumours have managed to form an odd mixture that continually batters the conscience of people who once believed in the few leaders who have managed to stand up to what is true. Why are these leaders failing?  Are there still true mentors? Here are my thoughts

Role models didn’t choose themselves – we chose them.

Mentoring is defined by someone whose behavior in a particular role is imitated by others. We choose them, we make them celebrities, we form our opinions of them through the things they have achieved, their pedigree, credentials and we develop and form an opinion of the code of life they should follow and when they intimately cannot follow them, we get disappointed and blame them for not being up to the standards.Role models are not necessarily mentors- we chose them because of what we heard, read and our opinions of them, then we can’t blame them for our idolizing them.

The best of men are still men at their very best

No matter how great a mentor or role model is, he/she is till man/woman at his very best. I was conducting an interview for someone two weeks ago and he made a profound statement. If there were no checks and balances, even a holy man can fail. I personally don’t idolise people and my Pastor totally abhors it. I’m pastored by Tunde Bakare and though I’ve been ministered to by him for over ten years, I still have a room for him to fail. The only problem we have is usually that we have equated some people to the nature of Christ himself. We listen and respect and learn from men, but ultimately we follow God. If your CEO, Pastor, Role Model falls, we don’t have to fall with them, pick up yourself and follow Christ Though as we move in life, we tend to focus less on the things we shouldn’t do and to focus on the things we should do; we still need to give men room for the frailty of the human nature. Broken promises, backstabbing, heart breaks are all a result of putting too much trust in the infallibility of the human nature.

Most times role modeling can be addictive.

When you’re a role model, the primary focus is on you- I mean people can’t have enough of you. You speak here and there and you suddenly think having moments in front of the large audience and microphone and are tempted daily to present the polished and structured part of their lives. But when you become a mentor, the primary focus is on your protégés. The time commitment of role modeling is simply the life you lead, with everyone free to observe. Your actions continually speak and everyone can consciously predict where you stand even when you have not spoken. The time commitment of mentoring is a personal involvement in the lives of a select group of protégés. As a role model, you say: “Here’s a way to live that you might want to emulate.” As a mentor, you say: “Here’s a way to live that you might want to emulate…and let me share the details of my journey.”

Role Models must mentor

While a role model is “someone whose behavior in a particular role is imitated by others” a mentor is a mentor is “a trusted counselor, guide, tutor or coach”. Mentoring is a progression of role modeling. Most times we chose mentors we do not have an idea of why they do the things they do, we only see them at their best- giving speeches, smiling on red carpets and well scripted books they probably never wrote a line of it. If role models communicate, they become mentors. Role models must share from their heart the things that have influenced their lives, how they have navigated the difficult choices of their lives (not only the ones that yielded results). People are not tending to find role models among the people they relate directly with and those who have the opportunity to influence their lives.

Finally we must communicate. Since our mentor-deprived generation is desperately searching for one, we hardly encourage peer communication as we even navigate our own challenges and even churches can be very guilty of this. Most times we talk about every thing except the things that matter to us. Look and search for a mentor, they may not have time, but create it. We need them, we need friends.

Selah.

If you were to ask in a general business meeting, Church, mosque or in any gathering that how many people have ideas, you will be amazed with what you get to see as a response.

One of the things you quickly discover is that you are not the only one with great and sound ideas; neither are you the only one who needs funding. Most people will, rather than developing the idea into a plan and strategy, they jump out looking for funds to finance the business. They then begin to complain that people or banks are not interested in thelping businesses . I once watched a TV programme where people came with ideas for funding and you wonder how they got to the TV. It was obvious that God was doing them a favour by not giving them money for the business in the first place. Today will be dealing with what investors look for, what Banks, funding agencies, partners look out for in your business before committing their funds into your idea or business.

Capital:

How much is required from them? Most times, most of us look out for huge amounts of money TO START the business whereas we do not need that huge amount of money; we only want to start the business from the top. Imagine a man who wants to start business of producing soyamilk in bottles, and needs 3 million naira, but the only experience he’s had has been to prepare the soyamilk for 10 people! Investors will also want to know how much you are willing to put into the business, especially if you do not have a cogent excuse to be indigent. Nobody will invest in an idea you are not willing to invest heavily in yourself.

Condition:

For funding organizations, it is important to know themarket, the competition and the conditions under which your business is being launched. An already saturated market will require a risk-taking investor, if you need someone to fund your organizations. It is generally known that banks are reluctant to fund agriculturally related projects mainly because of the high risk involved in the farming process.

Some other factors include; industry- size; target audience, competitors and players, season- cyclical. The partner or bank will also like to know you are willing to bear the risk associated with going on with the business and the ne essary risk mitigation startegies you have in place.

Capacity to repay:

This is the primary intrest for most institutions that may require interest on your pating back terms. How long it will take for to recoup money invested is also a consideration. Is the commodity one that the money will just be a once time investment and recoup such as supply and delivery of goods amd services, or one such that it will require gradual

Character:

This is most comonly called virtual capital. Your character is the capital that you have that guarantees that you can get cash even on the viability of your word. It is possible to conduct business, collect goods based on this tremendous goodwill you enjoyed or are enjoying. An investor who saw that at one time you borrowed money and have repaid within the specified time, assures the investor that he is safe.

I get money in credit and return within the experience in handling the area/field of work is also part of your character when it comes to looking for finances.

Collateral:

Collateral is one factor that chases people out of banks. a collateral is an asset that you have put down as a guarantee to pay the money. Of course, if the time lapses and the money is not yet paid, after a while, the Investor may beging to look for a way to recoup his money by impounding and selling your assets. I know one way of going around this is to have a guarantor (you character- virtual capital)who can vouch for your  integrity.

It also may be reassuring that most Micro Finanace Banks can  grant up to N500,000 without collateral and after fufilling some minimal  requirements.

But then, remember money is not the most important thing you need to start your business. it may be needed to grow it but it is not mandatory you have lots of money. All the best.

It is important to know and recognize the vital signs of a relationship’s potential. When I meet people and we talk about whether a relationship should continue or die, I quickly discover that relationship don’t break suddenly, the danger signal begins blinking long before a break up is imminent but the people were not watching out for them. Those times were actually opportunities to restructure and recognize those threats before they threaten your marriage or relationship.

I am not a fan of broken relationships and I will never be a fan of divorce. But then there are some courtships, dating or love relationships that will have too drastic an effect. The greatest tragedy of a broken relationship is not the loss of the intimate relationship, it’s a broken heart. When we break up, we leave behind parts of us thereby entering into another relationship defective. It is therefore important to know when to hang in or work on it, and when to move on, to understand when conflict is healthy and when it is destructive.

Caveat! It is crucial to know there are no absolutes, especially when dealing with human behaviour. These are some of the vital signs I thought about, you are free to add yours to it. There might be trouble;

1. If God tells you it is wrong. There are times when we enter into relationships even though we know we know it is wrong, even when our friends tell us we are making a mistake, especially when it seems the person it too good to be true- it probably is. Somehow, those things come back to hang us by the wrists.
2. If there is no one, no value, and no being to which you both submit to. There might be fire on the mountain. It is essentially proven that for any relationship to succeed, the two individuals should not be the center of attention of the relationship, something else, you both value and that will not get tired- God, vision, value could be in the center.
3. If you aren’t thinking of the future together. Have you ever thought about the future without imagining him/her there? You you plan your lives independelndependently of each other? Does he/she ever tell you about her /his plan without thinking of you? It’s probably because you are not in the picture yet.
4. If you are relating from the position of need. If you need the relationship to survive. If you need to be in the relationship. Is is a dangerous thing if you enter a relationship because the lady/man is filling a particular emptyness in your life.it is really not a good sign if your happiness depends on another person. It makes your happiness dependent of the actions and inactions of another person. Also goes to the paerson who enters a relationship because he feels he needs to fix the other persons life. Remember, a relationship or marriage is not a tool for evangelism, neither is it a tool to change the other person. When the contract between the fixer and the fixed is finished or cannot work out, they will look for another challenge.
5. If there’s no Chemistry: chemistry or passion is what makes a friendship (commitment, intimacy) graduate into a love relationship. No relationship will last long if the love and passion in the relationship is one-sided. The giver one day will be tired of putting so much into the relationship without receiving love. Every strong relationship is built on mutual strength, companion friendships and support. There is also
6. If you lose nothing if you end the relationship, it’s probably not worth much to you. Your partner should serve as an important source of encouragement, strength and support. At every slight disagreement, if you think of leaving and can readily think of getting another guy/girl, you may probably do that soon. It is an indication that no value is being added in the relationship.
7. If you have not learnt to fight successfully. Fighting successfully means the ability to fight and take corrections, the ability to disagree and not allow that to destroy the fabric of your relationship. Most couples in the heat of argument say things they never meant and that signals the end of a wonderful relationship. Times and moments of anger brings out the hidden person within, and if the two people have not mastered the art of coping with that person, an end might be imminent too.
8. If you are not open to change and growth. Relationships bring about new challenges and there may be need to constantly become accustomed to attitudes, mindsets, thought patterns and people we never thought we could never thought we could never cope with. More importantly, we will need to change and grow, but if we are comfortable and rigid about our mindsets, perceptions and attitudes, you may soon have to create a relationship with them! Long lasting relationships are built on the ability to complement and adapt to each other and the situations as they come around.
9. If the person exhibits a behaviour that makes the relationship difficult to stay. There are behaviours and attitudes such as fits of rage, stubbornness, smoking,one partners’ undue submission to external influence. Or if your partner sees himself incapable of changing.

It was a great pain not to have the opportunity to post on my birthday, but thanks to all the folks on facebook, the made a great difference.

Ok, yours may not be a direct fake but then, the person with the original should be able to withdraw at ease, ok?. What happens if someone uses your ATM number/card to make transaction and it was not yours? It was not a joke, but then our first reaction was to laugh. We were brainstorming on developing targeted market penetration strategy for one of our products in the office when the phone of one of my colleagues beeped.

“What kind of nonsense is this?” can you imagine I’m receiving a text saying I just withdrew

NGN20, 000 through the ATM?”

Just as he was saying that, another text came in saying another NGN20, 000 has been lifted from the same ATM machine He quickly rushed to his car, where his Diamond Bank ATM was and while bringing the ATM card into the office, he received 2 other messages of NGN20, 000 each again. The scammer eventually lifted NGN85, 000 from the account; an act which we later found out was from Okota in Isolo, while we were in Lekki.

The bank insisted the transaction was made with his ATM but admitted they could not explain how he got to Lekki with his ATM in 20minutes, if he made the withdrawal in Zenith bank branch in Isolo. That was the only saving grace. He probably could have been arrested for carrying a fake ATM card; at least the “owner” now has the money! lol

But then, with the introduction of the new technology, “yahoo plus” guys are not stopping at anything to see that their aim of scamming by all means is achieved. I once read of the story of a lady who helped a guy withdraw money from his ATM, since he said he didn’t know how to use the machine. The lady got to the ATM another day only to discover she was carrying the wrong ATM; the guy had swapped the cards! It is needful to become street-wise in dealing with people and your property.

The gist? Be careful, your ATM can be stolen, swapped or cloned. This “thriving business” has been in the UK, America, Japan and all countries where technological advancement is moving fast and we have to be aware of the pitfalls, especially in a nation where system failure might not be a mirage. Though internet is awash with news of this scam, I’ll just offer some helpful tips.

Here are some helpful tips;

1. Never, ever give away your PIN number even if the MD of interswitch calls, mails or sends you a text message/mail. Eg. InterSwitch is upgrading their service, Please go & register UR ATM Cards NOW on www.interswitchnig.com. Only registered ATM cards will work on the ATM Machines. The real Interswitch website is www.interswitchng.com. Those whp love sending people to collect cash on their behalf might be guilty of this.
2. Anyone who needs your help should go to the bank. Stay away from people as if you were in the banking hall. Many people have in the process of helping others have shared their pin number, donated their cards, even have their cards cloned.
3. Don’t just use ATM at anywhere (preferably in the bank). Some ATMs just make you a waiting target for marauders and thieves waiting for easy cash. Preferably use ATMs in places where banks are located in close proximity to the AM. There are lesser chances that the ATMs there are not tampered with. Tamper?
4. Cover the keypad while you type. That may look crude, but then, there are programming made to the ATM to extract your pin. Some could be in the form of a video capture device placed above the ATM, while some are typed on the keypad.
5. Keep an account entirely for saving, without using ATM.
6. Be strategic about your withdrawals. Never withdraw haphazardly. Some people withdraw at the slightest instinct and their bank balance report looked like a badly done report. I’ve met an individual who withdraws only twice a month, and an actual amount. That helps in tracking your expenses and scams, if any ever came up.
7. Above all, move/report physically to the nearest bank when scammed.

]]> http://adeolakayode.com/2009/03/your-atm-may-be-fake-helpful-tips-at-beating-yahoo-plus/feed/ 0 http://adeolakayode.com/2008/12/making-the-most-of-information-and-seminars/ http://adeolakayode.com/2008/12/making-the-most-of-information-and-seminars/#comments Tue, 16 Dec 2008 16:23:13 +0000 deola http://adeolakayode.com/?p=92 On my way back from another business transaction yesterday, I thought the book on e-Myth Mastery by Michael Gerber which I forgot to pick on my way out of home so I could read during waiting times… Ok, that’s not true I had left un-read at home countless number of books, eBooks, charts and lots of stuff ( let him who does not have unread pdfs, cast the first stone!), so much that I feel like getting a book on how to manage and read books…lol.

Welcome to the age of information; we do not just have access to information, we are swimming. We are in the information age. I don’t know if you are like me, with a number of partly-read hardbacks and countless number of eBooks, each with their powerfully crafted topics, promising the power to change you/your environment, business and finance, only if you have the patience and TIME to read, remember, and apply them- those are the major problems. How about the amount of other information that is coming through my ears in discussions, movies, mp3s, phew! …we are truly swimming in the age of information.

It is rather unfortunate that it is not the people who have the information that shape the world. I mean, two out of four birds decided to jump, you know how many will remain? Four. Because two birds decided, we never knew if they actually did. Likewise lots of us buy books, attend seminars and falling in the hands of other people selling information, copying and downloading every free PDF-looking file on the net, packing and stuffing our hard discs and flash drives with information…hoping one day we will get to read the stacks of books. Swarming in the midst of this all, it’s hard to find time to develop yourself, build value and dissipate the same into the environment if you really do not have a plan for it. How many times do you go to learn time management, pay o learn how to explore an opportunity

1. Do you have a life goal?

One of the fundamental reasons why we amass lots of books is because we have never realized the fact that all books are good. Ok not all, but an awful lots and loads of them. But we have not come to terms with the fact that we need to be strategic in handling the information that enter into our minds. Imagine that books are like footballs. Why have stacks of footballs on the field without a goal post? It is important that we have well defined life objectives that the amount of information will help you fufill. If you already have one by praying and planning then it should have been broken into bits and the necessary skills needed to achieve them identified. Furthermore, supporting books can thus be identified. I mean the one that will best address the skill. 

For me, I need to develop myself in the field of project management, and I have access to about 26 eBooks, totalling 326MB on my system. After defining my objective I need to find that book, the book that covers most of the areas of the subject matter I am interested in. I eventually chose the PMBOK   (Project Management Book of Knowledge) and a Q & A support for it. After reading that, I can skim through every other book on the subject.

1. Have a life goal development plan

The problem we have in applying strategies to our lives is not to read more books, but to pay attention to and apply the existing knowledge we have to develop ourselves in the particular area. Do we pay attention to the daily attainment of our goals? Do we set an agenda for the habits we want to develop/stop?. Assigning a month to learning about managing finance ensures I read only books that address the subject matter. Ensuring that I go to a seminar because I INTEND and really will begin using the knowledge at most a week after I have been there. Most of us jump into opportunities when it is already public news, by then, it’s already late- the losers are rushing in.

All information should be tailored to meet the goals and plans for your own personal development.

1. What will the information add to you?

What do you plan to do with what you’ve learnt? If you are paying money for a seminar or book have you determined how desperate you need the information? I once finished two books of an average of 350 pages per book in 48 hours while working 6 hours every day. Why? I had to defend a proposal on the subject matter in about 2 days. The content of the information was important and necessary to win the proposal. If there is a demand on the knowledge or an impending consequence of not having or applying the knowledge we are geared towards focusing on the task at hand. I started being an early say starter when the demand for time

1.  Set a time chart for your personal growth and development

Another thing to consider is to define per month how many books to read and which topic to cover; and specifically which books to read. Most times now I discover when I get to borrow books, I read them faster to beat the deadline given by the owners. It is important to you know the direction in which you want to develop yourself and how. Keep a journal where you write stuff you’ve learnt from. If you love it use a highlighter to decorate the wise sayings from your own copy of the book, and make sure you are able to track your progress along the line. Probably refuse to read a new book until you’ve finished the ones you started reading.

I have to stop here so I prepare the proposal I will be taking to meet a client tomorrow. I’m also putting things down for the end of the year and Nigeria in particular. Stay with me…