The greatness of a man is not in how much wealth he acquires, but in his integrity and his ability to affect those around him positively. – Bob Marley
WOW, IT HAS FINALLY ARRIVED! Yes, 2017 is here with all of its prospects and possibilities. It boasts of being pregnant with 365 days and 24 hour periods in each of those days. The year 2017 is generous.
It is delighted to freely make available to you a total of 8 760 hours, 525 600 minutes, and 31 536 000 seconds from January to December, filled with potential opportunities for you to make something beautiful with your life.
Think about it: do you realize that over 31 million seconds have been placed at your disposal which can determine whether you walk in wealth or parade in poverty?
I am not talking about making empty resolutions, but your taking decisive action to be wealthy. Formulating a resolution without including the necessary get-up-and-go to go along with it is like trying to make an omelette without egg. Having an action plan will help your resolution to take wings in order to reach its desired destination.
Note I am talking about wealth and not just money. Wealth includes financial resources, but it is not restricted to dollars and cents. It is wider in its scope and embraces an “abundance of anything, plentiful amount or something that is valuable in content”. For example, an individual can have a wealth of knowledge or even a wealth of experience.
Wealth therefore can comprise those great resources within an individual’s mental, social, physical, emotional and spiritual well-being that may have been developed or just lying dormant waiting to be developed.
However, to attain wealth in those respective areas. Requires dogged determination and an intense passion to excel. You must begin to look for opportunities when faced with obstacles and triumph when confronted with trials in order to be a “cut above the rest”. Developing mental wealth is the first area I shall address in this series.
Mental wealth
All things being equal, whatever you set your mind to accomplish, there is the great possibility that you can achieve it. The Bible says that you have been made in the image of God, and a part of God’s image in you is your mind.
God is a thinker and has given you the ability to think, so that you can develop a healthy and wealthy mind with the capability to achieve greatness. Such achievement may be realised by your stimulating your mental capacity over time through formal and or informal education. By acquiring a wealth of knowledge you may become capable enough to build a strong, solid information base that can help you make quality decisions. Without a healthy mental attitude however, you may short-circuit that great possibility.
a. Positive mental attitude
Thomas Jefferson was spot-on when he underscored that: “Nothing can stop the man (or woman) with the right mental attitude from achieving his (her) goal; nothing on earth can help the man (or woman) with the wrong mental attitude.
There are individuals I know that have the innate capability to develop their mental gold mines and become excellent in areas for which they are naturally “wired” but refuse to adopt a positive and progressive attitude that will push them into greatness. In addition to a poor mental attitude, fear of failing may prevent you from becoming mentally wealthy.
b. Conquering fear
There are those who know they have the inborn capability to expand their minds to develop certain skills with which they have been endowed, but are in the habit of telling their minds that they cannot do it. Such individuals go never cultivate in part or in full what is their natural birthright.
Kobe Bryant, the renowned basketball icon in openly speaking about his fears, can become a source of inspiration for you to face and overcome your fears. He confessed: “I have self-doubt. I have insecurity.
“I have fear of failure. I have nights when I show up at the arena and I’m like, ‘My back hurts, my feet hurt, my knees hurt. I don’t have it. I just want to chill.’ We all have self-doubt. You don’t deny it, but you also don’t capitulate to it. You embrace it.” What encouragement. There is yet another blockage to your cultivating a wealthy mind – laziness.
c. Leave laziness behind
At the beginning of this year a young woman remarked, “I know I’m lazy. But I made myself a New Year’s resolution that I would write myself something really special. Which means I have till December, right?” What a thumbs-down expression! There are so many individuals I have encountered who are like this individual. They park their minds on the sidewalk of laziness.
What a tragedy. Pope Paul V1 implied how valuable it is to develop mental wealth and to move away from the liability of laziness: “All life demands struggle. Those who have everything given to them become lazy, selfish, and insensitive to the real values of life. The very striving and hard work that we so constantly try to avoid is the major building block in the person we are today”.
d. Benefits
Cultivating mental wealth has the potential to guarantee you numerous benefits. You can become more marketable and financially independent in a competitive world. You can think for yourself and become less likely to be controlled by mental human vultures. You can be a leader and not a puppet to be used by undesirables. Your confidence and security levels can rise admirably.
You can also use your acquired skills to educate, empower others and add value to the lives of others. Your ideas and concepts can be valued by others.
The above are just a small sample of what the possibilities are if you strive to become mentally wealthy. Get on with the business of developing mental wealth. Next week I will look at another area of wealth enhancement.
• Haynesley Griffith is a marriage and family life consultant. Email: griffitharticles@gmail.com
