I’m a Genie in a Bottle Baby…

 Jesse is walking! He’s done his first steps today, oh look at his smile…cheeky boy! Well done, you! You're a star! Fatima has said her first word today? How amazing is it? She just mumbled Mommy and I’m so proud of her…

·        Digging up our own hole

 There is this marvellous period in life where you are supported in whatever you do. In fact you are even encouraged to make mistakes and still receive plenty of love. You feel very confident to give it go and explore things as you can see you are not being judged harshly and the results usually speak for themselves: the large majority of us then start making faster progress and in a matter of weeks and months, we then achieve bigger and more impressive results and embark ourselves into a journey that  takes us through the different phases of life, especially from childhood to adulthood, passing by the critical teenage years.  And there something completely stunning happens. We stop receiving constant encouragement, we start getting criticisms from different sides, we all of sudden feel judged by the people and the society and the results are immediate: we retract, we shrink, we lose our confidence, we stopping aiming for our ambitious goals, and we confine ourselves into a role and a life that we believe will suit us but which does not makes us happy. We buckle to the pressure and expectations of society. We stop to dare.

Do you recognise yourself into these words? I certainly did. I have gone through these steps multiples times and found myself stuck into a place where I clearly knew I could NOT exploit my potential. I had a choice to make: either I would pick the safest option (apparently) to accept this life and then not complain and face it with bravery or take the other riskier path to chase my dreams and express my God-given talent….

·        What did I choose?

Well, I believe the answer is obvious and I do not need to expand on that but what I would like to humbly share which in my mind is a determining factor is this:  THE BELIEF IN OURSELVES! Being able to say: “I AM MY GREATEST FAN, MY GREATEST SUPPORTER” and I can be as impressive as I used to be when I was…a baby. I’m willing to rediscover this inner strength.

To fuel the challenges the external World is throwing at us on a daily basis with our own constant beating-up “You’re stupid, How can you do that, Shame on you, …” is certainly not a recipe for success. Just imagine a second Usain Bolt having such a coach? Will he be beating records? Or Serena Williams constantly criticizing herself, will she be the greatest Tennis-woman in the World? We can all agree that is not the way to go. Correct?

So why would we then do the same thing and expect a different result then? Welcome into the World of Insanity😊.

On a broader perspective, whatever is the goal, the mission, or the dream we’ve given to ourselves, it is our utmost duty to believe in us and in case, we still have doubts, we at least need remember who and what we are fighting for and find the courage like them to back the right jockey: Ourselves!

This strong belief is ourselves is what will give the courage to give birth to our ideas and come up with some of the most transformative concepts this World has yet to see. Could it be that this is recipe the likes of Steve Jobs, Bill Gates, Elon Musk,  Oprah Winfrey, Aliko Dangote, Tony Elumelu would have applied? Success leaves clues….Let’s copy with pride😊.

Tony Tiyou is the founder and CEO of Renewables in Africa (RiA) is a Clean Energy Company raising Awareness about Renewable Energy in Africa and across the globe. Interested in our Awareness Program? Click HERE to find out more or talk with us on Clubhouse.