By Pearson Mbendera
There is a story in the bible about two men who started building houses; one built his on soft ground while the other built his on rocky ground. In the end, a storm came and destroyed the house built on soft ground that the man who had it as his shelter has to seek shelter from the man who had sweated building his house on strong foundation. The same can be said of our lives in general, let us build on our strength and not on what comes easy.
But many people are opportunists, they jump in on what is easy and currently marketable and they make it their home, but once hardships occur, because they don’t have a firm foundation, will be found running away for something else. It’s good taking on opportunities, but if you have something good of your own, you won’t need to make a life of always hunting for easy opportunities because you don’t have a trade that you call yours.
Life will always test you, that’s something guaranteed, how you will respond will depend on how well you were prepared. Strong people are always prepared for difficult situations and will tackle them head on.
Many people live in fear, fearing that they will fail, that’s because they make their life to be about their weaknesses and not their strengths. If you focus on your strengths (and not ignore your weakness) you will be able to assess your chances that you won’t go about life fearing that you will fail, but you will know what kind of effort you need to put in a project, what are your chances and what it is that is required of you to succeed, rather than sit on the sidelines, afraid of something that maybe too easy for you.
Your life is what you make it. And only you can decide how you will build it. Everything is in our hands and we can decide. But sometimes choice presents us with problems. Should you go strong when there is an easy way out there? I read an article some time ago about effortless success. The title alone got me, we all want easy things and that was the reason why I clicked on it.
There is much debate on the working smart vs. working hard. While there are some compelling advantages on either side, truth is, emphasis shouldn’t be placed on how well you work but on what you work on. Because without a strong foundation, whether you have worked hard or worked smart, your house will come tumbling down at the sight of the first storm and blowing wind.
So it is important to carry out a SWOT analysis, figure out your strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats so that when you build, you will know how to build and on what. Know yourself first before you begin any building. And well, know why you are building. For temporary occupation, a weak structure might be all you need.
Identify your strengths and build on them. When struggle comes, it won’t knock you down because you will be standing on firm ground. It might shake you a little, but it won’t win over you. Because you are strong and can stand whatever comes your way.
So in this year, 2014 make it, fake it or break it, the choice is all yours. You have been given all the information and the ammunition you need. You have the time and the resources, now you decide what you will build on. And while you are building, have the storm and the heavy blowing winds in mind, what might take a day to build and look so beautiful on the outside, might just end up being a pile of rubble tomorrow when the storms hit. And remember, the storm doesn’t come your way because they hate you, they fall on everyone, and it’s only those who would have prepared well for the future that stand the best chance of surviving the strongest of storms. Be one of them, decide today. I know I have.
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