What is the next level you want to be?
How do you intend to get there?
When I tell people my age, they go: ‘I can’t believe it. You look 35 years old or in your late 30s or early 40s.’ Laughing I let them know that I wasn’t always like that. In my early 20s, I was looking like I was over 30. When people saw me with my elder sister, they asked if I was her ‘Aunty’, she would turn and give me a knock.
A time came in 2009, I began to prepare for the next step and kickstarted what I tagged ‘Reinventing Myself’. I decided to make adjustments in 3 areas of my life: Appearance, Health and Person Growth and Development.
For my appearance, I started researching on beautiful skin and lifestyle. I was wearing size 18 at the time, so I desired to come down to size 12 or even 10. Shopping for clothes, I picked between sizes 14 and 12. Then worked towards it. (How I achieved it is story for another day.)
I signed up for free courses on enhancing my look through natural products (I started battling with pimples at a young age), researched on my skin type and made changes on the products I was using.
In the area of Health, I stopped taking every fizzy drink, cut off food that do not help my passion and desire for maintaining great healthy living. I signed up to some programs and took free courses.
I started simple exercises I called ‘executive 5 minutes exercises’ that can be done even while waiting at a banking hall. (If you need help on this area, you may feel free please to ask me about it.)
In the area of Personal Growth and Development, I invested in myself starting with $1 Mentorship with John Maxwell before I joined his team (which was a real betting on myself – the cost was huge but worth it). I signed up for Brian Tracy’s Personal and Business Growth Strategies. The materials are still serving me today. I set up a goal to pass the ICSAN Professional exams to become a Chartered Secretary and Administrator within a certain time.
In 1993, I had travelled all the way from Port Harcourt to Lagos to get the application form. I paid N150 for the form and N350 for the brochure. But merely seeing that the fees were in pounds, I was frozen with fear. I could not take further steps. When I set the goal in 2012, after setting the ‘Reinventing Myself’ in motion, to qualify within 2 years, I achieved it despite terrible setbacks and obstacles on my way. (That’s story for another day).
I had a desire to facilitate for my Institute and when I inquired from the Registrar, she told me I needed to attend the Train-The-Trainer (TTT) programme which will mean another huge investment. I planned for it, attended the TTT and became a facilitator for the Institute of Chartered Secretaries and Administrators of Nigeria (ICSAN). I am also a Volunteer Mentor Facilitator with Aspire For Equality (formerly Aspire Foundation) based in the United Kingdom (UK) and a Volunteer Facilitator with Lagos State Ministry of Education for the Ready Set Work (RSW) programme designed to help graduating students to acquire Employability and Entrepreneurial Skills. I run a consultancy firm: Madil Associates Limited.
I ask again: do you long to get to a whole new level in your life, career or profession and you don’t know what to do? Reach out to me for a free 30 minutes Coaching.