The Gift of Patience.

August 17, 2023 In Musings 9 Mins Read By Lanre Dahunsi

Knowing trees, I understand the meaning of patience. Knowing grass, I can appreciate persistence. – Hal Borland

Patience (n.) ¹c. 1200, pacience, “quality of being willing to bear adversities, calm endurance of misfortune, suffering, etc.,” from Old French pacience “patience; sufferance, permission” (12c.) and directly from Latin patientia “the quality of suffering or enduring; submission,” also “indulgence, leniency; humility; submissiveness; submission to lust;” literally “quality of suffering.”

“Have patience with all things, but chiefly have patience with yourself. Do not lose courage in considering your own imperfections, but instantly start remedying them—every day begin the task anew.” – St. Francis de Sales

One of the most essential lessons I have learnt from running multiple marathons is the value of patience and seeing the end in mind. American author and speaker Joyce Meyer said, “Patience is not simply the ability to wait – it’s how we behave while we’re waiting.” We live in a fast-paced world where we want everything at the speed of thought; a webpage loading longer than 3 seconds is considered unacceptable, overnight success is the goal, methodical step-by-step execution is considered boring, waiting for your time is considered slow and delaying gratification is not the norm.

“Patience is not simply the ability to wait – it’s how we behave while we’re waiting.” – Joyce Meyer

What are the facts?

August 16, 2023 In Musings 5 Mins Read By Lanre Dahunsi

A fact is something that is known to have happened or to exist, especially something for which proof exists, or about which there is information. The law of gravity states that whatever goes up must come down, that is a proven fact until someone proofs otherwise. If someone decides to disobey the present law of gravity by jumping from a 50-storey building unaided without support such as a parachute, they would become a casualty. Whenever we are dealing with other human beings, most of us operate from a place of emotion instead of the fact.

Pace yourself.

August 15, 2023 In Musings 6 Mins Read By Lanre Dahunsi

Pace is a rate of movement, especially in stepping, walking, activity, progress, growth, performance etc. One of the most important lessons that I have learnt from running multiple 26 miles marathons in the past decade is the value of pacing yourself. Every marathon course is different; you need a strategy to navigate the course, weather and other unforeseen circumstances. The marathon is a very egalitarian sport as everyone starts simultaneously, the rich, poor, skinny, big, learned, ignorant, etc. The difference between the winner and other participants is the pace at which they run, which is determined by their training volume, pacing, stamina and running strategy.

Optimize for Joy.

August 14, 2023 In Musings 4 Mins Read By Lanre Dahunsi

Joy (n.) ¹ – “feeling of pleasure and delight;” c. 1300, “source of pleasure or happiness,” from Old French joie “pleasure, delight, erotic pleasure, bliss, joyfulness” (11c.), from Latin gaudia “expressions of pleasure; sensual delight,” plural of gaudium “joy, inward joy, gladness, delight; source of pleasure or delight,” from gaudere “rejoice,” from PIE root *gau- “to rejoice” (cognates: Greek gaio “I rejoice,” Middle Irish guaire “noble”).

We all want to be happy at some point in our life; all the striving and chasing is all geared toward what we think happiness means to us. Optimizing for joy means doing only things that are making rejoice, laugh, feel good about yourself, surrounding yourself with high-energy people, avoiding energy drainers and protecting your peace. One of the ways that I have tried to achieve what the French call “Joie de vivre” – cheerful enjoyment of life, is by partaking in a lot of activities that raise my spirit, give me joy and make me hopeful for a brighter tomorrow.

I spend at least one-sixth of my daily 24 hours doing activities that are optimized for joy such as exercising in the gym (basketball shooting, swimming, weight lifting, pickle ball, badminton), participating in outdoor activities such as lawn tennis, outdoor cycling and outdoor running. One of my favourite activities is to read a great book or listen to an audiobook. Life is full of ups and downs, the challenges keep coming as it is not a matter of if but when. Having coping mechanisms that are optimized for getting joyful has made the bad days not too bad and solving the issues has not been too harsh.

The Journey is the Reward.

August 13, 2023 In Musings 5 Mins Read By Lanre Dahunsi

In the past 365 days, I have participated and finished eleven 42.2 KM marathons in nine cities. One of the questions I get asked after every marathon is: “What was your position?”. I usually answer with the “It is not about the finishing position” response. Most non-long-distance runners don’t seem to understand why anyone would leave their city of residence, fly to a new city to run a marathon and still not win anything or aspire to win anything. The reward is the journey of conquering the 26.6 miles distance and the numerous lessons to be learned by participating in the marathon,

Book Summary: The Outsiders by William N. Thorndike.

August 11, 2023 In Biographies 7 Mins Read By Lanre Dahunsi

“You are right not because others agree with you, but because your facts and reasoning are sound.—Benjamin Graham

In The Outsiders: Eight Unconventional CEOs and Their Radically Rational Blueprint for Success, author William N. Thorndike profiles eight unconventional CEOs whose firm average returns outperformed the S&P 500 by a factor of twenty—in other words, an investment of $10,000 with each of these CEOs, on average, would have been worth over $1.5 million twenty-five years later. Thorndike referred to these unconventional, radically rational chief executives as “The Outsiders.”

As a group, these CEOs faced the inherent uncertainty of the business world with a patient, rational, pragmatic opportunism, not a detailed set of strategic plans.

Recycle Your Pain.

August 11, 2023 In Musings 6 Mins Read By Lanre Dahunsi

Somedays will be more challenging than the rest, you will not want to get out of bed in the morning, and you will feel tired of all the challenges you are going through, but you have to keep showing up day in and day out. Success is not guaranteed, but struggles and pain are. Whatever would go wrong would eventually go wrong at the worst time expected time. No one has a pain-free life; the pain is temporary; no pain, no gain, no thorne, no throne, no gall, no glory. Adversity introduces a man to himself; you get orange juice if you squeeze an orange. Life is going to happen to you at some point: job loss, health scare, divorce, childhood trauma, depression, etc.

Be Decisive.

August 10, 2023 In Musings 5 Mins Read By Lanre Dahunsi

Decisive (adj.) ¹, “having the quality or power of determining,” from Medieval Latin decisivus, from Latin decis-, past participle stem of decidere “to cut off; decide”. Meaning “marked by prompt determination” is from 1736. To achieve anything worthwhile in life, you must first decide what you want, stay committed to your goal and relentlessly execute by taking massive action daily. Scottish mountainer William Hutchison Murray put it best when he said in The Scottish Himalayan Expedition:

“Until one is committed, there is hesitancy, the chance to draw back, always ineffectiveness. Concerning all acts of initiative and creation, there is one elementary truth the ignorance of which kills countless ideas and splendid plans: that the moment one definitely commits oneself, then providence moves too.

All sorts of things occur to help one that would never otherwise have occurred. A whole stream of events issues from the decision, raising in one’s favour all manner of unforeseen incidents, meetings and material assistance which no man could have dreamed would have come his way. I have learned a deep respect for one of Goethe’s couplets: Whatever you can do or dream you can, begin it. Boldness has genius, power and magic in it. Begin it now.”

It is estimated that the average adults makes about 35,000 conscious decisions ² daily while a child makes about 3,000 decisions daily (Sahakian & Labuzetta, 2013). According to researchers at Cornell University, we make on average 226.7 food decisions daily. (Wansink and Sobal, 2007). ³ Most of the decisions that we make is habitual and in autopilot, the key to getting things done is to make more deliberate and conscious decisions daily. Our decisions and choices on a daily basis determines the direction of our life. Good decisions leads to good habits & fewer regret, Bad decisions leads to bad habits and more regrets.

Just Do It.

August 9, 2023 In Musings 9 Mins Read By Lanre Dahunsi

“Just Do It” is the aspirational and inspirational slogan of the American show company Nike. The tagline was coined by Dan Wieden, one of the founders of the Wieden+Kennedy ad agency. In 1977, he followed the murder case of Gary Gilmore, who was executed by firing squad. Wieden was brainstorming for a tagline for a new series of Nike commercials, and he remembered Gilmore’s last word, “Let’s do it.” He changed it to “Just Do It,” and the rest, they say, is history.

You don’t have to be great to start but you have to start to be great.

Book Summary – The Coaching Habit by Michael Bungay Stanier.

August 9, 2023 In Book Summaries 8 Mins Read By Lanre Dahunsi

A little more asking people questions and a little less telling people what to do.

In The Coaching Habit: Say Less, Ask More & Change the Way You Lead Forever, author and speaker Michael Bungay Stanier describes seven essential questions for becoming a better coach. Stanier advocates staying curious a little longer and asking more questions as a tool for coaching.

The real secret sauce here is building a habit of curiosity. The change of behaviour that’s going to serve you most powerfully is simply this: a little less advice, a little more curiosity. Find your own questions, find your own voice. And above all, build your own coaching habit.

It is never too late to be who you might have become.

August 8, 2023 In Musings 6 Mins Read By Lanre Dahunsi

“Don’t fear failure so much that you refuse to try new things. The saddest summary of a life is: could have, might have, and should have.” ― Louis E. Boone

English Novelist George Elliot said: “It’s never too late to be what you might have been.” According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the overall median age of American workers is 42.3 years. ¹ The Average Age of a Successful Startup Founder Is 45. ² We all start life with wild dreams and aspiration but along the way, we forget our greatness hence we settle for less than we can become. As American Essayist Ralph Waldo Emerson quipped “To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest accomplishment.” It is never too late to be who you might have become, fear is at the root of most of our inaction. The graveyard is said to be the richest place on earth, as we leave our music unsung, books unwritten, hopes and dreams unexplored just because we never dared to follow through with our wildest dreams.

Book Summary – Small Company Big Business by Bronwyn Reid.

August 8, 2023 In Book Summaries 5 Mins Read By Lanre Dahunsi

In Small Company Big Business: How to get your small business ready to do business with big business, Small Business | Big Business Relationship counsellor Bronwyn Reid describes the five essential steps for attracting and retaining buyers as customers – whether they be national or international companies, Government, or even large Not For Profits.

The Power of Association.

August 6, 2023 In Musings 7 Mins Read By Lanre Dahunsi

My mum constantly told me, “Birds of a feather flock together.”, “If you lie down with dogs, you will get up with fleas.” I did not understand what the saying meant growing up, but the older I get, the more meaningful that statement becomes. As the famous saying goes, “You are the average of the five people you associate with the most and the books you read.” Your net worth is the average of the people you associate it, and to a large extent, how far you go in life is determined by your association, good and bad.

Define your Life Stance.

August 5, 2023 In Musings 4 Mins Read By Lanre Dahunsi

If you don’t design your own life plan, chances are you’ll fall into someone else’s plan. And guess what they have planned for you? Not much. – Jim Rohn

American essayist Ralph Waldo Emerson once quipped: “To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to change you is the greatest accomplishment.” If you don’t stand for something, you fall for everything. Most of us live on autopilot, people-pleasing, without healthy boundaries and invariably do not stand for anything. A life stance is your position on life, a frame of reference in which you are known.

Experience is not the best Teacher.

August 4, 2023 In Musings 9 Mins Read By Lanre Dahunsi

experience (n.) ¹ late 14c., “observation as the source of knowledge; actual observation; an event which has affected one,” from Old French esperience “experiment, proof, experience” (13c.), from Latin experientia “a trial, proof, experiment; knowledge gained by repeated trials,” from experientem (nominative experiens) “experienced, enterprising, active, industrious,” present participle of experiri “to try, test,” from ex “out of” (see ex-) + peritus “experienced, tested,” from PIE *per-yo-, suffixed form of root *per- (3) “to try, risk.” Meaning “state of having done something and gotten handy at it” is from late 15c.