In the past several weeks I have been reading John Mason’s book titled: Imitation is Limitation. This is quite an interesting title and would recommend it to everyone who desires to do things differently. It is not only easy to read, but also the ideas shared in it are both quite thought-provoking and practical. The short chapters make it even much easier to read and follow through.
I have picked two things from the book that I want to share today that can significantly help each one of us as the year starts.
- One is that you will always have whatever you want in life if you help enough other people to get what they want.
This sounds very simple, right? But how many of us get to invest by touching the lives of other people? Come to think of it, every person you touch at a personal level says thank you, offers a prayer for you, and would be gladly willing to render a helping hand if you found them in another place where they were in a position to help in return of the good you did to them.
A good and practical case in point here would be how you will treat the teachers who helped and believed in you when no one else did. Imagine you were a doctor today, and the teacher who inspired you most came to your hospital for treatment. Or even think of the lowly jobs like the matatu conductors or bodabodas when you help them somewhere and the next time you meet them in their workplace. Just see the amount of kindness they show towards you for the good you did for them.
Now imagine there were enough people placed in strategic sectors that you helped when they needed your help. How much business or opportunities would you have if enough people out there were looking for a chance to return a favor as a thank-you note for the good you did for them? How much easier can your life be? How much money can you earn out of this?
I share my practical experience on this. My daily work involves working with people from diverse backgrounds and parts of the country. I am amazed how many times I warmly get stopped all over by folks eager to just say hi, if not for anything else. I have been sorted so easily and effortlessly in offices where many other people would go through hell without any extra effort on my part simply because someone remembers me from my work assignments or my name was referred by someone I treated kindly in my line of duty.
As I took stock of 2023, I was amazed by how many assignments earned me good money just because I got referred through a phone call by someone who referred me to someone else. I have had opportunities as far as foreign lands simply because someone gave out my name and sought my permission to share my contacts with total strangers.
- Two is that what the fool does at the end, the wise person does in the beginning.
Again this metaphor is quite profound in separating the mediocre and average people from the stars in their field and craft. Take for instance the simple proposition to start saving from as early as yesterday. The wise person goes ahead and starts immediately with the little that they can master and do it consistently. While most of us are waiting for a salary increment or for the time we shall be earning more to get started, they are not only growing their finance base but also installing the right habits, attitude, and culture.
By the time most of us start the rush towards retirement or after we’ve lost so many years of savings, the one who started immediately is already enjoying the fruits of compounding what they started savings years ago.
The burden and sacrifices of saving do not become lighter by starting late no matter how much increments you receive in income. A saving is a sacrifice you have to make at any stage in your life to enjoy better benefits at a later date. Either way, it will still be painful at whatever stage you begin. If this were true then, isn’t it better and easier to start now with what you know you’ll eventually do anyway?
Can 2024 be your year of action and not procrastination?