THE CHARACTER OF EXCELLENCE

 THE CHARACTER OF EXCELLENCE

Excellence is a word we all are quite familiar with. Excellence means superior in kind or degree. We have most often associated excellence with results. When we think of excellence,we think of straight As in examinations,we think of quality products of business,we think of quality delivery of service but today, we want to examine the character of excellence.

For those of us that are Christians,when we think of excellence,one Bible character comes to mind,Daniel! The Bible mentioned of Daniel, that an excellent spirit was found in him. The term "excellent spirit" doesn't mean anything too spooky or mysterious,the original Hebrew translation for "excellent spirit" also means "the character of excellence".

"An excellent spirit" is different from "the spirit of excellence" but let's not do the theology today, let's stick with understanding excellent spirit. So beyond the results, excellence is a character. Excellence is not "Effizy",Effizy is the great grandchild of excellence. The results are only the fruits of excellence.

Today, we will learn about three characters of Excellence.

1 Time Management: Excellence is typified in time management. Time is a very important key, that is most often trivialised for "deeper" truths. Time is truly synonymous to life,to destiny. That's why on the gravestone,not so much information is imprinted,only the length of time spent on earth is written there. So the summary of the man's life consists of how much time he has to spend here and what was done within that time frame. Our time started counting from the moment of birth to the moment of final breath. A person with an excellent spirit is one who has a quality understanding of time and as a result, guards it jealously and makes quality investment with it. A student that wakes up by 7am,gets to school late by 9am, returns home by 5pm,sleeps at 9pm only to wake up the other day by 7am is, no way under earth, going to have an excellent result. Time management is seen in having priorities and allocating time to every activity based on the hierarchy of importance. A student who plays as much as he reads,gists more than he practises questions,sleeps more than he listens in class is not an excellent student. Sleep is important,play and recreational activities are important,social relations are important but allocating the same time and energy to all these activities is wrong.

2. Discipline : Discipline is a controlled behaviour. I'll define discipline as putting boundaries and self-imposed limitations for the purpose of a higher goal. Daniel,a man with an excellent spirit said I would not defile myself with the king's meat. Daniel,the Bible character,after being a foreigner and slave in a country,was introduced to the palace,and he still chose to stick with his diet and not take the king's meal. That's unimaginable to many of us. That's what most of us would typically call a dunce but discipline is being able to,but not doing it, because of a greater cause. Discipline is seen when you can,but you don't. You intentionally caution yourself. A student that eats what he likes,sleeps when he likes,reads when he likes,attend classes when he likes and just lives his life based on what we call "cruise and vibes" in this generation,is a student who will fail successfully. His failure will be so excellent. A perfect failure. Apostle Joshua Selman said "discomfort is usually the mother of comfort". Jesus said "allow it to be so for now". You have to permit some inconveniences to attain your goals. If you're too comfort driven,you will never see some levels of accomplishment. Greatness is never in the comfort zone,it doesn't stay there. There are times,you must burn the midnight lamp,there are times,you must turn the plate over,there are times you must go the extra mile for certain things to be done.

3. Honour : This is one character of excellence that you might not have considered but honour is a character of excellence. Honour simply means according people the dignity and treatment that is due to them. Honour is celebrating people for their uniqueness. I sit in my lecture rooms and I'm embarrassed by the gross dishonour of students to the lecturers even while lecture is going on and I know in that instant, that these ones can never pass this course. It's not a curse, it's a law. Whatever you dishonour,you can't have. I know that lecturers and teachers might have their excesses,our parents might have their excesses but a Yoruba proverb says "it's not from my mouth,that the death of the old teacher would be heard". Honour is seen in words and behavioural conduct. Honour your teachers for their contribution to your growth. "Are they not paying them for their work?" That's the voice of foolishness. They are being paid but they deserve your honour. They have sailed through the storm you're struggling to get through,be humble,neglect their flaws and honour them. When you choose to honour regardless of their human imperfections,you have set yourself up for series of effortless results. There are people that a "Good morning Sir" with a bow and a smile got them their dream job,while some arrogant people keep going about with their first class certificates without any hope of employment. Add honour to your arsenal today and watch the lifting power of honour. And always remember,to honour, regardless of human imperfections,because the best of a man,is still a man.

My aim for today was to shift our focus from obsession over results when we think of excellence. It's more than reading tirelessly for an exam that guarantees straight As. It is more than buying a new sophisticated machine for your business to make the business expand. Beyond the results,have an excellent spirit. With a character of excellence,the results are reproducible. There's a way to get the results. We have discussed only three but even if these three are all you learn and begin to practise,they can cause remarkable changes in your academics,business and even personal life. Excellence is not spooky,it is attainable. One book that I read and also recommend is "Excellence: How to Purse an Excellent Spirit" by Andrew Wommack. I hope you have learnt something. Drop feedbacks an reviews so we can know how much these truths are changing our lives. Thank you. See you next month.

    

                          Thank you.

                       The Impact Team.